Welcome to America, GuP
by SeekerMeeker
Summary: Mason Paine considered himself just an ordinary young man, who just got into anime and manga. However, when a group of girls suddenly appeared from his favorite show, he had to not only deal with his usual life, but also help his new friends adjust to a new world: the real Earth. Urban fantasy AU [Girls und Panzer is the property of Actas. OC's are mine. Rated T for future topics.]
1. Chapter 1: The Abandoned Motel

**Hello! This is SeekerMeeker! If you know, I was working on "Girls und Odyssey," a science fiction take on GuP, in which the Anglerfish Team ends up in the US! However, as time progressed, I realize that I am not really good at getting the technology right; I am more into fantasy than into science fiction.**

 **Hence, after some time, this is the result. I may or may not restart on the previous one, but I have a feeling that this will be my latest project...**

 **In the meantime, enjoy! And check out our "Amazon Vor!" story, co-authored with Trex98! Panzer vor!**

* * *

 **Welcome to America, GuP**

 **By SeekerMeeker**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The Beginning of the Opening**

The forest shivered in the calm breeze, as robins and mockingbirds sang on top of trees. A single, paved road lied gray and old, snaking through the grove of old trees not far away from the city of Acta. However, the road was slightly ancient, so that grasses and even tree saplings started to penetrate through the cracked asphalt layer. Fortunately for the road, a single car blazed through the trail.

A white 2008 Honda Accord sedan confidently paved through the road, mowing down grasses and little trees under its powerful, jet-black tires. It hummed and rumbled, as it continued up towards its destination. A recently abandoned motel, with nine rooms and a single office room, sat on top of a flat hill. The car passed by a gateway, with a whitewashed sign that read:

 **Portal Motel: Home to a New World!**

"Strange sign," a young man said, as he parked his car and popped out. Rather on the tall side, with a very broad torso, the boy fixed his scalp, a huge crown of rather wavy mahogany-brown hair topping his head like a noble oak. Fixing his blue, square glasses, the man stared at the motel in front of him, his dark blue eyes glowing with curiosity.

The motel was only a one-story building, but it was apparently abandoned quite recently. Its white walls still looked quite well-painted, while its blue roof was remarkably in good condition. However, the motel is raised slightly above-ground, apparently to prevent native rodents and animals from crawling through.

"It looks weird," the man remarked, analyzing the motel. "It looks American, but has some designs of a traditional Japanese house. Raised floor, a large, gently curved roof, and even sliding doors. Plus, I can see that we're supposed to take off shoes, as well..."

 _Ring! Ring!_

"Hello?" he answered, taking out his smartphone.

"Hey!" a voice boomed through the phone. "Mason! Sorry, I have to be late!"

"Late?" Mason sighed in disbelief. "You told me to come to this 'haunted motel,' and now you're late?"

"I'll be there!" his friend called through the phone. "Sorry about that!"

"I am already here. Please come," Mason called, rolling his eyes. "Thomas, make sure you come first, next time."

"OK!" Thomas called, before turning off.

Mason rolled his eyes again, as he put the phone into his left pocket and stretched.

"Man, that was not too long!" he remarked aloud to himself. "But driving feels different from biking. In fact, I did not even need to drive here! It took me only about...eight minutes? That close to home? Man, I should have biked; that's way better!"

Then, he looked at the road.

"Maybe after somebody removes the weeds," he muttered to himself. "In the meantime..."

* * *

"I am here!" a young man with very, very shaggy blond hair down to his neck and pale green eyes ran up the weedy road. Huffing and puffing, he was smoking at the same time. Mason was eyeing the whole structure, when the figure appeared before him.

"Thomas," groaned Mason. "How many times did I tell you to either run up the hill, or stop and smoke? Not both?"

"I love to smoke!" declared Thomas. "Even on hikes!"

"Don't make me mourn at your grave," said Mason seriously. "And it's not good for the air, either."

"OK!" Thomas said, lighting up the cigarette. Puffs of smoke floated into the fresh air, and Mason backed away, frowning.

"So, this is the motel you talked about," said Mason, eyeing the building again. "While waiting, I took the time to look around this structure. It's quite well-built. Did a Japanese build this?"

"I don't know," Thomas shrugged. "But you know why we're here?"

"Oh boy," Mason rolled his eyes. "The claim that this place is haunted?"

"Not just haunted," said Thomas, smirking. "I heard that this place, or somewhere near it, is home to an ultra-dimensional portal of some sort. Rumor has it that this motel is the center of it all!"

"Why that today?" asked Mason, frowning. He was no fan of such nonsense.

"Lately, some daredevils came here," said Thomas. "And swore they saw rifts in the time-space continuum! Three purplish-red rifts opened up! Elderly people, who lived all their lives in Acta, admit that they also went up here! Lately, nothing of interest happened here since."

"And what's the point of the reckless teens and the old people?" asked Mason. "And what made you come here in the first place?"

"Aw, you're no fun," said Thomas. "I guess churchgoers like you have little sense of humor."

"Some Christians do," said Mason. "And some don't. And are you a hippie wannabe or what?"

"Just a guy wanting to be himself," answered Thomas. He pulled out a cigarette can, where he threw his cigarette in. "Say, I heard that you just got into anime and manga."

"Yup," said Mason. "Weird, since I heard that Christians are not supposed to look at such things..."

 _"Mason, make sure you keep away from such things," his mother told him back in high school._

 _"Why, mom?" he asked her. "They're not all bad."_

 _"Too much stuff that I cannot explain to you," she told him. "And some I have no intention to explain. So, leave it alone."_

"And why did you get interested?" asked Thomas. He had a weird grin plastered on his face, and Mason could see a few crooked, yellowish teeth between the cracked lips.

"In my conscience," answered Mason, clearing his throat. "Japanese or not, comics are comics. Like American comics, not all of them are all-bad. And there are some American comics that are far worse than the Japanese ones."

"And what is your favorite?" asked Thomas.

Mason hesitated. Uh-oh.

Silence followed, as Mason silently tried to come up with a way to get out of the situation. Thomas stared at him, eyes wide and mouth stretched to a Grinch-like grin. The wind blew, gently tugging at Mason to say it. The trees swayed, singing for him to say it. The birds on the trees sang, chirping and cawing at him to say it.

"Oh," Mason moaned, then-

"ARRRGHHHHH!"

The roar echoed throughout the landscape. Pines, oaks, and maples in the surroundings leaned away, startled by the voice. Birds flew away, only to come back on their perches. The wind just glided around, waiting for the inevitable.

"Alright!" Mason said. "You win. I like one anime in particular."

"What is it?" asked Thomas, a smile of victory on his face.

"But first, said Mason. "Why are we here, of all the days? You still have not answered my question."

"OK..." Thomas replied. "I got here one day, because one old man told me a secret."

"A secret?" asked Mason.

"You know about unicorns, right?" asked Thomas.

"Yes?" Mason answered, unsure of what was going on.

"The old man," said Thomas. "Told me that a person with a pure heart can somehow 'open up' a portal or something. Rumor has it that a person of pure heart can open up the portal, and his greatest wishes will become true. Just as a virgin can attract a unicorn, so a person of pure heart like you is supposed to open up a portal that grants you wishes!"

"Wait!" said Mason, startled. "And you brought me here, because I am a Christian?!"

"Well," said Thomas, fidgeting. "I heard about great things about you. Your integrity, your purity, even your virginity. You were such a great candidate, so I dragged you along..."

"...just to see if a miracle can happen," Mason finished the sentence.

"Correct," replied Thomas, the sheepish grin on his wrinkled face.

They fell silent, as the revelation echoed in the distant air. The rolling mountains of the Appalachians loomed in the distance, as the mist clothed them in colors of faint white.

"OK, I got my answer," said Mason. "That was...weird. But my favorite anime is..."

He hesitated. The wind died down, listening. The trees stopped dancing, listening. The birds stopped chirping, listening.

"Is?" asked Thomas, curious.

"Girls und Panzer," Mason answered.

Thomas blinked.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Oh, so you don't know," Mason said. "Well, it's an anime about a group of high school girls, who ride on World War II-era tanks for sport."

"That's it?" asked Thomas. "No blond ninjas? No pirate superheroes? No magical girls with wondrous powers?"

Mason shrugged.

"BBBOOOORRIIINNGGG!" Mason booed.

The wind blew hard with joy. The trees shook in the wind with joy. The birds held on tight to their branches, singing with joy.

"Hey," Mason replied. "At least I now share an interest with you: anime and manga. And the surroundings seem to like it."

"But that's it?" Thomas moaned. "Now I remember what you're talking about: GuP. Short for that show, it is a niche anime for tank fanatics! And of all the people to get interested, YOU got into that?"

"Hey," Mason said, shrugging. "At least it's better and more appropriate than some of those...pornographic anime and manga?"

"They're not porn!" argued Thomas. "It's called fanservice."

"I am not totally sure about all those things," said Mason. "But I admire the designs. If only Christian artists could do something like that..."

"Yup," said Thomas. "I think you're the only Christian who actually understands such a cultural phenomenon."

"Hey," Mason said again. "Don't assume that all Christians are alike."

"And why?" Thomas asked.

"Well," said Mason. "Since you're my friend, I will just tell you: I want to go to Japan and evangelize there."

Thomas stared at his friend, jaw agape.

"You know perfectly well," said Thomas, very slowly. "That Japan is 99% non-Christian, and most of them don't know it much, if at all."

"Hey," Mason said. "If I cannot, then why not here?"

"Do you have any plans on how to do that?" asked Thomas, raising an eyebrow. "Money for the trip. Money for the food there. Money for housing. And the number of souls you save?"

Mason shrugged, smiling.

Thomas shook his head.

"You're one crazy optimist," Thomas admitted. "But I admire your passion."

"Thank you," Mason said. "I was hoping to do something like that someday, maybe even here in the US."

"And if your God or higher power or whatever," said Thomas, lighting another cigarette. "Denies you entry to Japan, what are you going to do?"

"I say," said Mason, raising his voice. "That on this day, I shall say: No matter what happens, I will try and do the unthinkable. I've always wanted to do something unusual, something dramatic, something awesome! Especially after I got into anime, I have one passion in mind!"

Thomas craned in. He loved to see his friend grow more and more excited. Mason is rather well-known for his level of passion, even in his old schools.

"And you know what?" Mason declared. "If God is willing, I could even try and reach out to the unlikeliest people on Earth to reach out: those girls in anime!"

Thomas lost it.

"You. Are. Out. Of. Your. Mind!" Thomas yelled, not out of anger, but out of incredulity. He grabbed his friend's blue T-shirt, shaking him very violently.

"Call me a lunatic," said Mason. "But I just love those girls. I wish we had Christian versions of them."

Something clicked in the distance, but Thomas did not hear it.

"You are the weirdest Christian I've ever met, Mason," admitted Thomas. "But that's why I am your friend."

"Thanks," said Mason. "I guess you're one of the few whom I trust. We're both weirdos, I guess."

Both of them laughed aloud.

 _Click._

Mason suddenly turned around.

"Mason?" asked Thomas.

"I thought I heard something," Mason said. "I-I think I heard it twice. Once, I just ignored, but the second made me curious."

"What do yo-" Thomas was about to say, but his phone rang.

 _Ring! Ring!_

"Oh, excuse me," said Thomas. "Hello?"

"Thomas! Where are you? Your boss is going to fire you if you're not here!" the voice roared. "You're supposed to be here five minutes ago!"

"Oh no!" Thomas cried out. "Not again!"

Mason rolled his eyes. Thomas' old but caring employee screamed at his co-worker only if he was going to be late.

"Get on my car," said Mason. "We're going to work."

"Thank you!" said Thomas, trying to kiss him. Mason frowned, pushing away Thomas' wrinkled face with cracked lips full of the smell of smoke.

"I am a boy," said Mason. "Not a girl. Leave me alone. Just get in."

Thomas dived into the right front seat. Mason then jumped in. The smell of smoke slightly choked him, so he opened his windows.

"Thank you Jesus," he said in a whisper. "That I at least have a car."

"Amen," both of them answered.

"OK," said Mason, putting on his seat belt. "Let's go."

* * *

The white sedan then drove out and turned around. The car quickly went down the hill, farther and farther away until it disappeared in the distance. Trails of flattened grasses and broken saplings remained on what remained of the road.

The wind continued to blow in the sky. The trees swayed in the breeze. The birds continued their chorus in the cool air. However, in the distance, something glittered...

A purplish-red line appeared.

 _Click. Click. Click._

It opened a little.

 _Click. Click. Click._

* * *

 **Cliffhanger? Maybe, maybe not. So, this is my newest project so far. It is an urban fantasy, so expect some "un-scientific" ideas and physics to appear later on. It is not science fiction, because I am not really good at describing technology realistically. Instead, this is going to have some form of magic called the "anime rules and physics." See you later in the next chapter! Panzer vor!**

 **As usual, please review and let me know how this will go! Check out my previous project, too! Honestly, I like this story now, but let me know if you like my previous project "Girls und Odyssey." And please PM me if you have very detailed suggestions to help this story!**

 **By the way, check out "GuP: Amazon Vor!" by me and Trex98! I got the inspiration while working together on that story!**

 **Update: the first four chapters are all revised and edited again, in order to remove some inconsistencies. Let me know if you see any! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**


	2. Chapter 2: Down the Rabbit Hole

**I give my thanks to everyone who reviewed my story, and the six people who followed it as well! Hooray! Now, onto the next chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Down the Rabbit Hole**

A slim figure of a high school girl strolled by, the breeze in the air whistling into her gentle, soft face. Birds chirped in the background, while the trees danced in the blowing breeze. She hummed to herself, as she walked by the nearby forest, and through the city. The sidewalk was plain but pure white, cleansed from dirt from the previous rain. A few puddles were here and there, but the lone girl did not mind. She skipped across a few of them, looking rather like an enthusiastic little girl going to an amusement park.

"Miporin!"

The girl looked around, and smiled. Her four closest friends stood at a distance. The girl who called out had a cheerful look, with her ginger hair and a cute smile. She was the only one wearing black, thigh-high stockings.

"Good morning, Saori-chan!" the girl called out to her friends. "How are you all doing?"

"We're great!" Saori called out to her. "Miporin, by the way, can you tell Mako to stop slouching around all the time?"

"It's in my blood," the shortest girl, her long hair flowing down like a lazy waterfall, yawned. "Blame it, not me."

"Mako, overcome your blood!" groaned Saori, shaking her old friend. "You have more life than that!"

"Miho-san," the tallest girl with an elegant posture said. "You look quite happy today."

"Oh yeah!" Miho giggled. "You're right, Hana-san. Actually, I had a wonderful dream last night!"

"Ah!" the girl with a mess of curly hair yelled out, making her nearby friends wince a little. "What was that dream? Dream of becoming the greatest Senshadou master of all times?!"

"Calm down," Miho said. Her calm but stern voice quieted the curly-haired girl down.

"S-sorry, Nishizumi-dono," she replied, blushing. "I-I guess I like to go overboard."

"You certainly do," Mako replied nonchalantly. "Yukari, why are you so interested in Miho's dream?"

"Just curious!" answered Yukari, almost giggling.

"So, what was that dream?" asked Saori, now curious herself.

"It was a happy but weird dream," Miho admitted. "Let me think . . ."

 _I found myself in front of a strange building. It was white with a blue roof, and it was a raised-floor type of sort. However, I notice that it looked funny . . ._

"Why?" interrupted Yukari.

"Hush!" both Saori and Hana whispered.

 _I-it was weird. It sort of looked like a Japanese building, but it was not exactly so. I saw it had sliding doors, but it looked different for some reason. I could not move, though. Stuck there, I saw a white car coming up. I realize that the building was on a mountainside, in a deep forest. But the trees looked strange, too. Quite tall and slim. Then, the car's left door opened, and a boy popped out-_

"WOW!" Saori roared, making others jump. "Boy, I wish I had that dream!"

"Hush!" Yukari whispered to her, making her blush in embarrassment.

 _The boy looked taller than us, but quite good-looking. He looked ordinary, but I felt an aura of kindness and mysterious energy emanating from him. He beckoned me to come, but I remember that I could not move. However, he beckoned me, and I found my feet being able to move. I walked towards him, but I felt different . . ._

Silence. Her friends waited. The surrounding air felt heavy, for some reason.

 _Suddenly, I saw a purplish-red line appear in front of me. It somehow cut me off, and I felt falling down into some sort of a black pit. I felt my whole body, even my soul, feeling falling away. Suddenly, a light shone, and I felt that same energy, which helped me to climb up out of that pit. Then, I ended up in front of that same building. This time, the young boy was standing far away, watching in the distance. I then walked up to him, and I whispered: "Excuse me?"_

 _He turned around, and smiled. Suddenly, everything went black, and I got up. I felt so great after that._

"Interesting," said Hana. "It appeared that you had a small nightmare in there, but the whole dream felt like a happy ending of sort."

"Maybe something like Cinderella?" asked Saori, jumping up and down for joy. "And finding a boyfriend?"

"It was weird," said Miho. "But now that I remember, I realize that I was not alone."

"What do you mean?" asked Mako, now curious.

"All of you were there with me," said Miho. "And we all were feeling the same thing."

Everybody blinked.

"Yeah," said Miho, giggling. "It was weird, but I felt that we all will meet him."

"But why only you?" asked Yukari.

"Maybe it's an omen," said Hana. "In my opinion, you represent all of us Oarai, specifically that of the Senshadou club. Maybe you are our leader, and you represent what we will face later on."

"Hmm," said Miho, thinking. "That makes sense, because I saw another thing."

"What is it?" asked Yukari, curious as usual.

"When I saw the boy," she said. "I also saw the whole land somehow morph into a woman. The woman looked like a white woman dressed in stripes of white and red, and her chest was covered in a blue cloth of sort with white stars. She also wore a strange hat. She saw me, opened her arms wide towards me, beckoning me to come. I found myself coming towards her, then she turned into a purplish-red line of sort, like a picture of a galaxy, and then I found myself in that same forest again. Then, I saw the boy-"

"And greeted him," all four girls said in unison. Miho nodded.

"Interesting dream," said Hana. "It's an omen about the future?"

"Now that I think about it again," said Miho.

"Wait," said Saori. "You keep adding details, aren't you?"

"I start to remember more of the dream," said Miho. "Another thing I remember is that I was holding a watch. When I was in that world, my clock was working. However, when I was in that weird black pit or something, it was not working. Now that I think about it, I also remember that I first started not at the building, but back in the tank garage. Suddenly, the clock stopped ticking, and we all somehow teleported to that building."

"And what was-" Yukari was about to ask, but they heard a ringing sound in the distance.

"MIHHOOOOOO!" the voice boomed through the speakers, then turned off. Miho and the others looked at each other.

"Well," said Miho. "It's another day. It looks like Anzu still likes to play jokes on me."

"We're there with you!" Yukari said. "No matter what!"

The others agreed. Smiling, Miho then joined her friends, and together they walked towards their training ground.

* * *

"Nothing happened, as usual."

Hana noted, which others agreed as they had their lunch inside of their garage. Eight tanks lined up inside the spacious building, as the five girls munched on their morsels. Miho sighed and looked up.

"Thinking about the dream?" asked Hana.

"Or the boy?" chimed in Saori, a little more enthusiastic.

"Oh please," Mako said, chowing down on her third piece of cake.

"Well," said Yukari, watching Miho's face. "I take that as a 'yes,' right?"

Miho shrugged, but her smile gave away the answer.

"Say," said Saori, stretching out. "What should we talk about?"

"The dream?" asked Yukari.

"Maybe that could be a different dimension," said Hana.

Everybody turned around to stare at her. Hana Isuzu was almost always calm and motherly in a way, but she sometimes acted weird.

"Huh?" asked everybody.

"Miho's dream," began Hana, as if in a trance. "Reminds me of something, about another world. Back when I was young, my mom entertained me with the idea of another world, outside of our own."

"Well," said Saori. "That definitely is not unique to your family. But I am surprised that you still think of that now."

"Hehe," said Yukari, blushing. "Actually, I think I can sympathize with Hana."

"Thank you," replied Hana, smiling. "I am glad that somebody does understand a little."

"Why do you talk about a different dimension or world?" asked Miho.

"Sometimes," said Hana. "You feel like our world is not the only world, do you?"

"Well," said Miho. "If dreams are a vision of another world, maybe."

"Thank you," said Hana. "I am glad you understand."

"Why?" asked Saori.

"That leads to another point," said Hana. "I've smelled something...suspicious."

"Suspicious?" asked Saori.

"Maybe one of those days," said Mako. "When our school ship does its 'cleaning session.' Although very rare, the sound and the smell are awful."

"You're right," Saori groaned. "Normally, our ship is so peaceful like a real island. But very rarely, when they do that ship-wide cleanup, oh! The sound and the smell of those 'anti-pest' chemicals and such are revolting!"

"It wasn't those," answered Hana. "I smelled purple and red."

Everybody blinked.

"Huh?" asked Mako, who stared at her. "Do you have a mental condition?"

"No," said Hana, shaking her head a little vigorously. "When I smelled it, I thought of both purple and red. I followed the smell, and saw something that made my spine chill."

Mako paled, not wanting to hear anymore. She hugged Saori tight, trying to _not_ think about it.

"Mako," said Saori, comforting her. "Stop assuming it's something scary, for once."

"I saw a purplish-red line of sort," said Hana. "Then, before I knew it, it was gone."

"Now that you say it," said Saori. "I do remember seeing something of that, while walking through my neighborhood."

"Oh!" Yukari remembered. "I also saw a purplish-red line of sort on a wall nearby my home! I thought it was graffiti, but it disappeared."

"And I thought I was dreaming," said Mako. "I saw a blurry line of purple and red nearby where Sodoko lived.

Mako shivered badly after saying that. Apparently, she tried to avoid the thought, but failed big-time.

"Now that I think about it," said Miho. "I did see something purplish-red, inside my dream and nearby my home."

"See?" said Hana, smiling. "We're not dreaming, after all. I believe that it's an omen. If all of us have a similar experience, then something will happen."

"Something of what?" asked Saori.

"Maybe or not," said Miho. "I believe that whatever the vision or experience was, we will all stick together and find out what is really going on. I am not sure about the way of the gods or what, but one thing is for sure; the truth is out there. Should we find it, we will try and understand it as much as possible."

"Nice point!" Yukari cried out. "That's our Nishizumi!"

Hana suddenly sniffed the air. Miho also felt something, the same feeling she had in her dream.

"What's this smell?" asked both girls.

"Huh?" others asked.

"Miho-san, you can smell it too?" asked Hana, sniffing the air.

"Yes," she answered. "It's so familiar..."

"Hey..." Saori said in a low whisper.

"Saori..." Mako said, her face slowly turning pale.

"What is it?" asked Miho.

"The clock," said Saori. "The clock...It stopped."

Miho and Hana blinked. Yukari quickly checked her phone.

"Nothing there," said Yukari.

"No," said Saori. "Our phone and our wrist-watches all stopped. Even the outside..."

Mako said nothing, but pointed outside to confirm Saori's words. Miho jumped down from their tank and approached the garage door. She peeked outside.

The whole world looked normal. The same clear sky still was outside, and Miho did not notice anything out of the ordinary, at first.

"Wait..."

Miho squinted her eyes. In the distance, she saw a member of the Public Morals Committee running frantically back and forth. Apparently, it was Sodoko.

"Sodoko looks alright," Miho said. "But..."

She noticed what made Mako scared; apparently, she had sharp eyes that saw far away well. Everybody around Sodoko was frozen in time; none of the other students moved an inch. Even the trees were frozen in time. The birds in the air, chirping before, were frozen in the air, and neither flapped their wings nor sang. They looked like hanging decorations, except that they had no strings attached.

It was all...too quiet.

"W-what..." Miho began to say, but she also felt that something was up. Turning around, she was startled to see others peeking out as well.

"Miho..." Saori said, starling Miho even more. Saori normally called her "Miporin," so calling Miho by her real name surprised Miho herself.

"What is this?" Hana asked what everybody had in mind. "Even the air feels...stopped. Did somebody freeze the air or something?"

"W-what's going on?" Yukari asked. "I-I can't call my parents either!"

"And look," Mako said, trembling.

They all looked. They saw a few of their own friends. The only ones who did not seem stopped in time were those from their own club, and they were as confused as they were. Like others, they were just hanging around as usual, and they found everybody else suddenly frozen in time.

"That's Noriko from the Duck Team!" Miho said. "She seems oblivious to what's going on, though. Her team, however, is starting to notice."

"There's Caesar and Erwin!" said Yukari. "And their other friends too! They start to notice something odd, too!"

"Azusa!" Saori said. "She looks scared, too! She's trying to calm her friends down!"

"Sodoko looks scared," said Mako, with a little fear in her voice. "A little too scared."

"There's Nekota and Nakajima!" Miho pointed out. "They, their teams, and everybody else who's not affected are all confused."

"What is going on?" Saori roared. "And what about Anzu and her friends?"

"There they are!" Yukari pointed. In the distance, three figures rushed, trying to calm those unaffected by the mysterious time stop.

"Let's go meet them!" Miho said. The others agreed, but found out that the garage door did not budge.

"Huh?" Miho realized. "Saori! Hana! Yukari! Mako! Check the other doors!"

They all checked. None of them opened.

"What is going on..." Saori shivered. She held on to Mako, who held her in return.

"Help!" Saori tried to call out through the gap in the garage door. Suddenly, as if a wind blew, the door crashed shut. The echo rang in the garage, making everyone silent as stone. Then, Hana broke the silence.

"It's that funny smell again," said Hana, sniffing the air a little more frantically.

"I smelled it in my dream, too," said Miho. "Only this one is stronger; it's..."

She turned around, and silently beckoned the others to look in the direction of her left index finger. They all looked, and gasped.

A purplish-red line appeared in front of their tank. The Panzer IV of the H variant, the pride of the Oarai's Senshadou club, loomed behind the ominous glow. The line began to expand, so that it looked like a portal. The color also changed, so that it glowed white, red, and blue.

Miho was the first to approach it.

"W-wait!" Saori said, grabbing her. "W-we don't know yet about that thing!"

"I've seen so many anime and manga that feature portals and gates," Yukari admitted. "But to see a real-life portal? This is beyond anything I've imagined!"

"W-what are we going to do?" even Hana, who was calm, said with a nervous air in her voice. Mako just trembled in fear.

"I think," said Miho, breathing. "That we have to get through the portal."

"You must be mad!" declared Saori.

"But I think it's the only way," said Hana. "If you saw something like this in a dream, and it happens in real life, I guess we have no choice but to follow Fate or God or whatever power is behind this mystery."

"Well," said Yukari. "Guess it's another adventure for us, right?"

"No more scary stuff," said Mako, holding Saori tight. "I am too scared. I am going with you all, no matter what."

"I guess we have no choice," said Miho. "Wait, let us see if we can take something from here before we go through."

Everybody agreed. They packed up whatever they could in their garage. Fortunately, there was plenty.

"Good thing I left my backpack here!" declared Yukari, lifting up her military backpack full of strange items that only a tank fanatic like her would know.

"How did you forget that?" asked Saori, as she lifted up a brown cardboard box full of her cooking utensils. "And how did I forget these too?"

"Oh," said Hana, finding a white, clean box. "It was here all along: my ikebana set."

"So," Mako said. "I guess we all found something of importance here."

"Mako!" Saori groaned, seeing Mako's bag full of candies and sweets. "So that's why you seem awake during our lunch break!"

"And my Boko!" Miho cried out in joy, hugging her three Boko dolls tight. The three dolls looked like teddy bears, but bandaged as if hurt.

"It's almost as if," said Hana. "That we all 'forgot' to take these stuff back home, which is almost like fate itself. As if we're supposed to take them along to the next world or something."

"Fate or not," said Miho. "We have what we need. Let's go-wait. Let's try and call our friends."

They all tried, but their phones are jammed.

"Oh yeah," Yukari remembered. "I forgot that I tried calling my parents, but it won't work."

"Looks like our phones are affected by this time stop thing, then," said Mako. "And the garage door mysteriously shut, so that we cannot shout at others."

"OK," said Miho, taking up her dolls. "Are you all ready?"

Everybody took their stuff, and nodded in response.

Miho took a deep breath, and silently prayed to a shrine or any supernatural being whom she knew since childhood. Then, she made the call:

"Let's go."

* * *

 **The next chapter is up! Now, we're setting the scene for the ultimate encounter: the humans from our world, and the girls from the world of _Girls und Panzer_! What will happen next? What is going to even happen? Tune in, and review and PM me as usual!**

 **And please support Trex98 and our story, Amazon Vor!, please. We really like more follows; the more the better!**


	3. Chapter 3: They are Here

**Seriously? I got ten follows, seven favorites, but only two reviews...**

 **Please, I beg all of you: review and let me know how you want the story to go!**

 **By the way, this is the moment you all readers are waiting for...well, I am not going to spoil it. Just read on, and REVIEW please!**

 **On a side note, also check out Amazon Vor!, the story by me and Trex98!**

* * *

 **Update: Now, my story has 14 reviews, eight favorites, and seven reviews!**

 **And this chapter has undergone a smallish overhaul, where I decide to change Mason's true age. That way, it is more realistic for my OC. I am not going to reveal his true age, until Chapter 5. Here, it is only implied. So long!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: They are Here**

Mason suddenly woke up.

"W-what?" he blinked, trying to shake himself. "What was that dream?"

 _Ring! Ring!_

"Hello?" he groaned, knowing who would call this early.

"Mason!" the familiar voice of Thomas roared out. Mason winced, frowning at his friend calling.

"It's 3:30 AM," mumbled Mason. "And you are still up?"

"I have a great idea!" he called out.

"What is it?" asked Mason halfheartedly.

"I am going to get white!" blurted out Thomas.

Mason rolled his eyes.

"Stop that, please," said Mason. "You know that's dangerous and illegal."

"Not anymore!" he called out, apparently smoking; Mason heard puffs after puffs.

"Drugs are illegal in America, you know," mumbled Mason. "And it's killing your health, too! Try and avoid that co-"

"Shush!" Thomas whispered madly. Mason shook his head; Thomas one time almost got caught with drugs, and he blamed the phone line for that. Since then, he referred to drugs by euphemisms.

"Alright," said Mason. "You don't care, do you?"

"Who cares?" Thomas called over the phone, still smoking audibly. Mason sighed.

"By the way," he said, in order to change the topic. "Are you interested in going to the motel again?"

"Nah," he replied with a little anger. "Nothing there, as expected. And I have another better things to do."

Mason rolled his eyes again. Thomas had a habit of saying euphemisms for many things (not just drugs), and this one basically meant his own "street activities" of sort.

"So be it," Mason shrugged. "Let me get more sleep."

"You're up!' Thomas groaned.

"I am up because of you," he replied. "Now please, let me sleep."

"Hey-"

 _Click._

"Can't he know that?" Mason asked to himself, getting back into his soft, warm bed. "Ah...That's great!"

He blinked.

"Oh yeah," he remembered. "That dream ...What was that?"

He suddenly forgot.

"Oh well," he said, and went back to sleep, turning back and forth in his bed. "If God wants me to remember, I will remember later."

* * *

 _Ring! Ring!_

"Hello?"

"Mason!"

"Mom! How are you doing?" Mason called, flipping an old, black book on his white, wooden desk. The alarm clock on his smartphone read: 5:45 AM.

"You woke up a little late, didn't you?" his mom teased.

"Please, mom," said Mason. "I remember that you wake up so many times early, just to feed me. Good thing you're at the morning prayer meeting today."

"Well," she replied. "It's good that my only son loves to wake up early."

Mason could tell that she was genuine about it. He shrugged, and smiled.

"Well," he called. "School is out today; it's weird to go to a high school for only four days of the week, instead of five, as I am used to."

"Well," she replied. "At least there are plenty of things to do here, such as going to college!"

"Mom!" he groaned. "Stop talking about college! I have enough worries in high school!"

"A junior like you?" she teased. "You sound like a junior!"

"MOM!" he roared. "Stop with those puns!"

"Oh, what a 'pun' day," she answered. "Let's go for a 'fun' day. See ya!"

"Good day, mom," he groaned. "And God bless."

"And God bless!" she said, making a kissing sound over the phone. He gave her a kiss back.

"And God bless," he noted, as he hung up the phone. Stretching, he then looked down at his book.

"Please," he said to himself. "I was about to finish, when mom called. Now, I forgot what I even read!"

He sighed, but stretched again, feeling happy.

"Well," he said to himself. "It's another day of work, friends, and money; let's get through this!"

He tidied himself up, looking into his body mirror. He wore his uniform, which consisted of his own blue short pants and a red shirt with giant, green commas that are supposed to represent the yin-yang. It looked weird, but it was a restaurant, after all.

"Let's go," Mason said, shaking himself. "Ouch, I should have slept in a different posture! What was that dream, still?"

* * *

Mason drove in his sedan to his workplace, the Kimchica Grill. The restaurant had a hard time in the past, but has flourished remarkably when he was around. He did neither the cooking nor the management, but whenever he came...

"Hey!" a deep voice boomed. Mason winced, knowing who it was.

A big, jolly guy with the physical appearance of Santa Claus, minus the white beard and Christmas robe, crashed out of the doors to hug him.

"Uff!" Mason groaned. "Tom, please stop this for once."

"Our dear lucky charm!" his general manager roared. "Welcome home, dear!"

"Stop thinking of this as home," Mason said. "You know that I am no source of luck, you know?"

"But hey!" he declared. "I remember the day when you came, and our business boomed. All because of your charm and nice attitude! It's Friday; let's get through this!"

Mason rolled his eyes, but smiled. That last part was one of his favorite phrases to say; the "let's go through this!" had become rather popular, and a good number of his peers at work now worked more enthusiastically as a result.

"What are you up to, now?" asked Mason.

"You are still at your usual place," Tom boomed. "You are our taster and greeter, as usual! Taste our Korean- _ish_ menu, and hope that it's great enough!"

"I cannot believe that we have to add a lot of salt and soy sauce," moaned Mason. He was tired of so-called Korean food being "Americanized" to cater to the needs of customers, most of whom were not Koreans. This place was no exception, but it was better than most, because he was around.

"Actually," Tom said. "We have."

Mason turned around, and stared with huge eyes.

"Here is our newest menu," Tom said, giving his favorite employee a booklet. "It features our 'authentic-as-possible' Korean menu. Try them!"

Mason gave a weird face, a face of doubt and curiosity. Tom was the general manager; he looked like a jolly man. Despite looking neither Mexican nor Korean, Tom was one of the top leaders of a strange, but very popular, chain of restaurants called the Kimchica Grill. In this chain, managers are encouraged to hire special people, known as "tasters," who knew how authentic Mexican or Korean food tasted like. It was only a part-time job, but Mason himself was responsible for tasting the "Korean" side of the menu.

"Combination of 'kimchi' and 'chica,' Spanish for girl," remarked Mason, as he tasted a sample of barbecued pulled pork. "Mm! This tastes like good barbecue! Just a little too much salt..."

"You thought we had beautiful girls here?" asked Tom jokingly. "I remember you asking that on the first day of work here! You want more salty girls?"

"Not salty!" Mason said, rolling his eyes. "But I am too busy with school to have one."

"Oh please," Tom smirked. "A guy like you looks good enough for a girl!"

"Seriously?" he questioned Tom's words. "But I guess..."

"But you are curious, right?" Tom asked.

"I do," Mason groaned and shrugged, then suddenly remembered that dream.

 _Mason ended up in front of that motel, the same old building. Suddenly, he saw it transform into a beautiful structure, and a group of very lovely girls were next to it. He found himself walking towards them, his heart pounding by the minute. One of them turned around, her beautiful smile radiating out like the Sun..._

"Hello?" a voice boomed. "Hello? HELLO!"

Mason blinked, and shook himself.

"Wha-what?" he replied.

"Let's go, boy!" Tom teased him. "We have a long day ahead! Well, not long for you."

Mason realized that Tom only snapped him out of his trance, but also dragged him to his usual station: the sampling station. Mason only worked at the tasting station, because his mother wanted him to minimize hard labor; she adored her son's elegant hands, and did not want him to ruin them.

"Mom..." Mason remembered her annoying behavior.

"Guess you're her mommy boy?" Tom teased him. "Well, are we ready to go?"

"OK! I am going!" Mason replied, as another worker unlocked the doors, and the first customers streamed in. "Hello! Welcome to Friday! Let's have some fun!"

* * *

"Huff! Puff! I am done!"

Mason limped out of his workplace, glad that it was all over.

"Why does that work make me feel like an old man?" he blurted out to himself, as he entered into his car. "I mean, I like the food, but...I don't think it's authentic Korean food. Speaking of that..."

He checked his car mirrors. His brown hair was tidied up, but had that flattened shape due to wearing a hat. His glasses were a little stained from the work; some particles of food and detergent were on his good glasses. His blue eyes, however, still shone with the same level of energy as he did in the morning.

"Brown hair and blue eyes," he said to himself. "Not exactly a very...'Korean' kind of trait. It makes sense, since my father is white American."

He sighed.

"Dad..." he said to himself. "I haven't heard you much. I hope you're doing alright in the military."

Mason remembered that families normally moved around when one of them is in the military. However, his mother somehow managed to get a special permit or something, allowing her family to stay in one city, while his father could focus on the military. He heard that it was rare for a family to request a special permit like that, but it somehow worked out. Now, he and his mother lived together in a single house, in the city of Acta.

"Oh yeah!" he realized. "Today is Friday! Need to get going..."

He revved up his engine, and drove to his destination.

* * *

"Mason!" a few people yelled, waving their hands. He waved back, grinning. If there was one place that made him relieve a lot of stress, it was that market.

The farmer's market. Four of them every week.

Starting in late spring and lasting until early autumn, Acta hosted four farmer's markets. The city of Acta previously won numerous awards for being the "best city for farmer's markets." Individual farmers also hosted their own street vendors here and there, hoping to catch the attention of the occasional tourist. However, the city of Acta officially set aside four days of the week for farmers and independent vendors, hoping to make good money. It also helped that Acta had a very diverse population, and the local government was very generous with the markets; recently, the mayor removed a major tax, so that farmers are more encouraged to sell.

"And I can save more money," mumbled Mason to himself, counting his cash. "Great! I have enough to spend about $10 for each market! $40 for great food? Yum!"

"Wait!" he suddenly remembered. "I remember that I also want to check out that place! But...there wasn't anything of interest...But something tells me..."

"Mason?" asked a local vendor.

He turned to face a couple. A middle-aged woman and her older-looking husband watched him with caring eyes.

"Oh, hi there!" he greeted them.

"Hey there, my friend!" the husband greeted him, shaking hands. "How are you doing today?"

"Great!" Mason replied. "It's just that...I am not sure whether I have time for the market today."

"How come?" the woman asked.

"Miss Pat," Mason said. "I want to be here, but there is somewhere I want to go..."

"Well, of course!" Pat replied. "We are still here next week and beyond! If there is somewhere you want to go, do it before you forget!"

"Thank you!" he said.

"Oh wait!" Pat called out.

"Oh no no!" Mason tried to argue. "I did not pay you!"

"Just take it," Pat said, giving him a free sandwich. The chunk of pulled pork erupted with delicious barbecue sauce.

"You win again," Mason grumbled. "See you later!"

"See ya!" the couple called.

"Where is he going?" asked Pat to her husband. "I don't see him looking a little...dreamy."

"Maybe he's looking for a girlfriend?" Pat's husband joked.

"Oh shush, John!" Pat punched him lightly. "He's young, but he has his own business to mind."

"Maybe he will," John shrugged. "Well, it looks like he IS looking for someone..."

* * *

Mason drove his sedan towards the motel again. Although still a long way off, he was still thinking about that dream.

 _Mason ended up in front of that motel, the same old building. Suddenly, he saw it transform into a beautiful structure. Now that he remembered more, it looked like the older version, but cleaner and more like a house than a motel. Once again, a group of very lovely girls were next to it, chatting among themselves like girls normally would. He found himself walking towards them, his heart pounding by the minute. He remembered one of them pointing at him, and the others turned around to look. One of them gave a very warm smile..._

"Oh wha?" he blinked. "Wait, I am in the wrong road! Eek, I could have been in an accident!"

Mason stopped his car in a private road, using it to turn around. He drove back in the opposite direction, realizing that he "zoned out" and sped past the original destination.

"Why am I thinking about them?" he loudly said to himself. "It's not like I can have a girlfriend or something..."

He drove into that same road, the old, weedy road that was rather hard to see. However, he stopped his car.

"Wait," he said. "Wasn't there a road here?"

The road _was_ there, but he did not remember the weeds being so dense. Now, dandelions, amaranths, and even young trees tall enough to annoy cars covered the road.

"How did they grow so fast?" he wondered. "Oh well, it looks like I have to...just get through this!"

Without thinking much, he went out to check his front bumper, then the plants. Although trees started to grow, they were still green and flexible, so Mason reasoned that they could be "bulldozed" over without damaging his car.

"Alright," Mason said, revving up the engine. "Sorry, old car. You are going to be my makeshift bulldozer. Let's go!"

He revved up the engine, and drove his car into the dense foliage. He winced with each crack and crunch, hoping that it was just the plants being crushed, not his front bumper being damaged.

"My poor car," he mumbled. After a while, he entered a less dense area of the road, and went out to check the front.

Although he managed to plow through, the car's front was not broken, but was a mess. Parts of trees and weeds stuck to his front bumper like an ugly tattoo.

"At least they did not crack my front," he noted. "OK, now the road looks normal, so how did that happen?"

He frowned, thinking hard. He remembered Thomas telling him about the motel being supposed to be a center of "mysterious dimensional energy." He also remembered something else from another person...

 _"That motel?" asked Serena, one of the people working at the market._

 _"Yes?" Mason replied. "You overheard our conversation with Miss Pat?"_

 _"Do you know about that place?" Pat asked Serena. "I do not quite remember; I think it's a recent legend here."_

 _"Actually," she replied. "I do."_

 _"Do you know about that place?" asked Mason._

 _"I heard rumors about it," she answered. "Some weird dimension of sort. It's said that someone with a pure heart can unlock its greatest secret. I heard that your wish gets granted."_

 _"Who came up with that legend?" asked Mason. "If that is so, then everybody would be up there by now."_

 _"Well," Serena said. "To be honest, I don't think there are that many good-hearted people these days."_

 _"What about you all?" Mason asked his fellow vendors._

 _"Actually," Serena said. "I heard that the Portal Motel has strange requirements."_

 _"Strange requirements?" asked Mason. "What do you mean?"_

 _"Well," Serena frowned, trying to think. "I-I heard that only a pure-hearted man who never had a girlfriend in his life could open up its secret or something."_

 _"What?" Mason asked, raising an eyebrow. "Who would come up with that legend?"_

 _"I think you should try it!" Pat told him. "You're quite a nice guy! And you're the type of person whom I can tell has never had a girlfriend in his life!"_

 _"Oh no no no!" Mason waved off her suggestion, blushing really bad. "I am not really that handsome; I do not have the face of a Hollywood celebrity or someone that handsome! And I have college to worry about in the future!"_

 _"Oh please!" Pat smiled. "Your face is fluffy enough to get girls to squeal with joy!"_

 _"S-stop it, please!" Mason said, blushing! "There is no way someone with a normal face of mine could ever get a girlfriend that easily!"_

"That easily, I said," Mason remembered, as he jumped back in a drove up the hill. His car mowed down the weeds as usual, the plants screeching in pain. Mason shrugged, and just climbed up the hill.

"I think I want a girl," Mason said to himself. "Maybe more? Oh, I am almost up and now I...I..."

His jaw dropped, while putting his car on brakes in shock. The old motel suddenly changed. Although it looked like the older version, it was definitely renovated so that someone well-off could live there. The old sign also was gone, and the whole area around the motel looked more like a school ground than a parking lot.

"What the..." Mason said. He parked his car, on the edge of the building's lot. Going out, he forgot to take out his key, and locked himself out! However, he was too stunned to realize; the sight made him confused.

"Is this magic?" he said to himself. "Or a miracle? God, what did you do here?"

He then craned around, and decided to circle the place again. It really looked like a fancy motel, the kind that someone richer than he could afford. Whoever renovated it apparently did it with the precision of someone who worked for the millionaires; every bit of the motel was painted incredibly well. All of the walls were bright white, and the sliding doors were shiny, looking as if made of quality wood and paper.

"Did some professional Japanese come here?" he asked himself. "What's up with this? And the road was hidden too!"

He kept circling the motel. He noticed that it looked even less like a motel, and more like a private residence fit for a Japanese of higher status and wealth.

"Wait a minute," he realized. "It sort of looks like the Nishizumi's household from the movie, but white and blue, instead of blackish. Definitely friendlier-looking than Miho's old home."

He then walked around, and stopped.

"Are you kidding me..."

He faced a group of girls in front of him. The purplish-red line behind them rapidly shrunk and disappeared from view.

"Are you kidding me..." he continued.

One of the girls pointed at him. The others turned around. The leader of them gave a smile, a big, warm smile.

"Are you kidding me..." he suddenly forgot what happened afterwards.

* * *

 **Well, well. Mason Paine. You sure got your wish, didn't you? Now, the girls are here, and now you will go through all kinds of crazy stuff. Now, you have to help them survive in your world, after all. But that is the least of your worries, because more are coming in, and this is not even the end of your "adventure." So long, Mason! Rest well...I hope you're not stunned too much.**

 **And please review, every chapter if possible. Especially PM me if you need some explanation from me. I appreciate any continuity error or strange detail that needs to be fixed; it is not always easy to ensure that all facts match up from Chapter 1 to Chapter 4. Thank you!**


	4. Chapter 4: Girls Meet Boy

**Nice! Updated this in less than a week! OK! Now, the third chapter is Mason meeting the girls. Now, it's girls meet boy in this chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Girls Meet Boy**

"What is this place?" asked Miho, something everyone else was thinking, as they trekked through the long, smooth tunnel. The five girls walked through the portal, whose triple colors of red, white, and blue now faded quickly, and disappeared behind them. Now, that was a dead-end; in its place was a clear, bluish glass wall.

The girls then looked around, in silent awe. The tunnel was also made of what seemed to be clear, bluish glass, shining like the calm ocean. However, the floor was sapphire-blue, sparking like real gems. Between the floor and the walls, white and red lights flickered faintly. The glass walls themselves formed a perfect circle, so that it really felt like an underground tunnel.

"But prettier," said Hana. "And are we in space?"

Outside of the tunnel, it was all-black, except for the many, many lights that looked like stars.

"Are we in an intergalactic tunnel of sort?" asked Mako, with a clear tone of amazement. "I see this kind only in science fiction, but this is..."

"Beautiful," said Saori, touching the glass wall to the left of the team.

"Girls," Miho said. Her voice snapped everyone out of their trance, and they filed up together. They recognized that tone, the tone of authority that got everyone to listen to her. Back in their own world, Miho's voice was the voice of command for everyone in her team, and in the whole Senshadou club.

"I don't know what is going on," she said, in the same tone. "But it looks like we have to move forward. I do not know what had happened, but the only way out seems to be forward."

Everybody nodded.

"Then," she said, fixing her bag. "Let's go."

* * *

The march forward was quite silent but serene. Miho marched in the middle, her pace the pace that others followed. Whenever one lagged, the others tugged her to pay attention. Even Mako, despite yawning a number of times, walked with the same speed as others. She kept her eyes fixed in the distance, hoping that the tunnel will end. Even now, she held the group together.

Saori stood to her immediate left. She still marched at the same pace, but kept looking up around the space, marveling at the star-like lights. Hana stood to Miho's immediate right, doing the same thing as Saori, but more gracefully and subtly. Yukari stood to the far right, smiling at Miho's calm demeanor even in this situation. Mako walked on the far left, more limping than walking, as Saori kept looking at her.

They kept walking, walking, and walking.

 _Tap, tap, tap._

Their shoes made echoing noises on the floor.

 _Tap, tap, tap._

The five girls kept walking forward, in line.

 _Tap, tap, tap._

"OH!" Saori suddenly screamed. Her scream threw everybody off. Miho twitched, and jumped back. Hana twitched, jumping back to avoid Miho. Yukari wildly flew her hands around, and fell on the ground, wincing at the impact on her poor butts. Mako just leaned away, then raised an eyebrow at Saori.

"This is too quiet!" she moaned.

"That's the reason?" Mako grunted.

"We've walking for how long?" Saori groaned. "It felt like hours!"

"It is not even an hour," said Hana. "Because none of us are tired yet."

"I am tired," answered Mako.

"Hey!" Saori admonished her, keeping her up. "Will you hold it still?"

Miho giggled.

"You are right," she said. "We better talk for a while. And still walk."

"Well!" Saori said. "What should we talk about?"

"Isn't that your question?" asked Yukari. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Boys!" Saori answered, jumping up for joy. Mako rolled her eyes.

"Tanks!" Yukari chimed in.

"Flowers," Hana replied, a little dreamily.

"Desserts," Mako smirked.

"Well..." Miho began. "I think I remember having a boy in my dream..."

All except Miho stopped, while Miho kept walking for a few steps before stopping. Realizing that she was a little ahead, she turned to look at her friends.

"Are you alright?" she asked them innocently.

"You..." Saori whispered.

"Wow..." Hana and Yukari said in a low voice. Yukari even whistled.

"You are not the kind to get interested in boys," Mako said in an unusually high voice.

"Wait!" Miho said, almost yelling. "I-I did not say that I am interested in boys! I just had a dream about a boy."

"And who was that boy?" smirked Saori. Mako saw her grin, and rolled her eyes. Yet, even she smiled.

"Well..." Miho began, her eyes starting to have that dreamy look...

 _He looked strange. I think he was half-white, because he had features of both an American and a...Japanese? He had a soft face, with bright blue eyes and shaggy, brown hair. However, he had one of the nicest faces I have ever seen..._

"Miporin?"

"Miho-san?"

"Nishizumi-dono?"

"Miho? Miho? MIHO?!"

Miho blinked, and realized that she sort of zoned out.

"Oh," she blurted out. "I-I guess..."

She blushed, her face as red as lava.

"You really look like a volcano," Mako teased. "About to erupt."

"Eh...Volcano is not a good metaphor for love," Saori corrected her. "More like a cupid shot her right in the face."

"Cupids are boring," said Mako. "Volcanoes are better, and more scientific."

Saori pouted.

"So, do you like that boy in the dream?" asked Hana.

"Do you?" Yukari chimed in, curious.

"How long was I..." Miho began.

"You started to doze off," said Saori. "When you reached the part about his face. Man, he must be handsome enough to attract even you."

"I-I guess," Miho admitted. "I rarely felt that warm before."

"I guess being a Nishizumi is hard job," said Hana. "Not much time for everyday life, correct?"

Miho thought about that, and shrugged.

"Let's just keep walking," she said.

Everybody just nodded and followed, but hid their secret thoughts. Was their leader in love?

"So," said Saori, in order to change the topic, while walking as usual. "What was that portal?"

"It was one of strange colors," Hana said. "First, it looked like magenta. Then, it turned into a mixture of three: red, white, and blue."

"Red, white, and blue?" asked Yukari. "Isn't that the colors of the American flag?"

"How did you know that?" asked Mako. "Saunders?"

"Yup!" Yukari answered, blushing. "I guess Saunders rubbed on me!"

"Oh!" Miho suddenly said out aloud, pointing. Everybody looked, and gasped.

"Finally!" Saori roared.

"A portal!" Yukari chimed in.

"Come on, girls!" Miho said. "Let's go!"

All five girls ran, as fast as they could. Even Mako had a stern face on her, willing to stay together.

* * *

"Almost there!" Miho cried out. "And...there!"

All five stopped to catch their breath. In front of them was the same portal, of red, white, and blue.

"We made it!" they all said together.

After a while, the girls then straightened themselves, and looked.

The portal in front of them looked just like the one they went through. It was swirling as usual, but now...

"Hmm?" Miho squinted at the middle of the portal. "What's this?"

They all looked.

"A picture of a building?" Saori inferred.

"It looks like a building from our nation," Hana noted. "But it looks..."

"American?" Yukari chimed in.

"Both," Mako concluded.

"Girls," said Miho. "Are you all ready?"

They all nodded, and together they entered.

Miho already knew the feeling, the same as entering through the previous one. The portal felt like cool water, but not wet. However, this one felt strange. It felt...cleaner? And it...

"Hey..." Saori whispered. "I don't feel right..."

"Me too," Yukari shivered.

"I feel different," Hana said calmly.

"Me three," Mako said, shaking badly.

"Hold it," Miho said, grabbing her tight. "We'll be all-"

 _Click._

* * *

Everybody blinked. They were in the middle of nowhere, or so it seemed.

"Where are we?" asked Miho, once again saying something that everybody else had in mind.

They all looked around. They were in a parking lot, a very clean one, as if a construction crew had covered it with fresh asphalt and painted fresh white markings on it. In the middle of the lot was that same building.

The building did look like a Japanese building. Miho realized that it sort of looked like her old home! However, it was clearly designed to be more like a motel, with nine separate rooms and a larger one. It also looked very clean, with fresh white paint and azure-blue rims.

Miho observed the building, then breathed. The fresh, inland air made her feel very good.

"Ah..." she sighed. "We must be in the middle of the forest. I-"

She heard a gasp, and turned around.

"Saori-chan?" she asked.

Saori slightly paled, but also had a blush on her face.

"Look," she said. "Look at all of us, and yourself."

"Huh?" Miho asked. "Why, wha...wait..."

They all looked at each other, and gasped.

Miho Nishizumi thought of herself as a normal girl, of normal size and of normal proportions. However, seeing herself and her friends, she understood why Saori gasped.

"I feel taller," Miho said. "No wonder these clothes do not seem to fit."

"And sexier!" Saori cried out, jumping up and down.

"Stop bouncing," said Mako. "Or else your chest may burst."

"MAKO!" Saori roared, as Mako smirked and ran around the building.

"Surprising," said Hana, as she and others giggled. "Mako seem more excited than usual, too. Her normally tired face now looks livelier. But my clothes..."

"W-we better find some bigger clothing," said Yukari, as she tried to keep pulling her uniform shirt down. "Even mine is a little too tight."

"Got you!" Saori yelled, as she finally grabbed her friend by the throat.

"Please," Mako smirked, wincing. "Can't you have fun?"

The two laughed, and walked back to the group.

"So," Miho said, as the girls all came together. "It looks like some unusual things happened. First, our world suddenly froze in time. Second, a portal opened. And third, we are in the middle of nowhere or so. But fourth, we seemed..."

"More grown up?" asked Saori. "But these clothes no longer fit me-wah!"

Everybody heard something rip.

"OK," Miho said. "We really need to get bigger uniforms."

"But how are we going to find them?" asked Hana.

"We need bigger shoes!" Saori moaned. "These shoes are killing me! Man, how did my feet suddenly grow?"

"We need bigger shirts," Yukari commented. "How did my torso grow so quick?"

"We need bigger skirts," Mako said, pulling down hers to cover her panties.

"We need bigger bras," Hana admitted. "My chest feels tight, very tight.

"Huh," Miho said, thinking. "We need to find someone..."

A white sedan suddenly appeared behind them. Miho immediately recognized it as a Honda Accord. Then, a young man popped out of the left door.

"Konnichiwa," Miho began, smiling. "Can you-wait! Wait!"

"Mister?" Saori cried out, as Miho dashed to the man. The man suddenly wobbled, and was about to collapse.

"Got him!" Miho yelled, catching the man by her hands. "Saori! Find the phone! Hana! Help me carry him! Yukari and Mako! Come with us!"

"Roger that!" all of them answered her.

"Sir, are you alright?" Miho asked him. "Are you OK?"

 _Click._

* * *

 **Another cliffhanger. I hope I am not overusing that. So, chapters 3 and 4 are sort of the same thing, except from two different viewpoints. After this, I should be doing that less often, since it was to establish two different worlds, the real world and the world of GuP, colliding together. The next chapter will be Mason and the girls interacting with each other.**

 **Spoiler alert: Mason speaks American English, while the girls are Japanese. Keep that in mind.**

 **More spoiler alert: The "click" sound is significant.**


	5. Chapter 5: Let's Talk

**OK, finally! Mason and the girls get to talk! Spoiler alert!**

 **On a side note, please not only fav and follow, but also review my story! And PM me if you have great ideas for how the girls will "survive" in the real-world US!**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Let's Talk**

 _Click. Click. Click. Click. Click._

Mason opened his eyes a bit.

 _What is that, and why did I hear it five times?_ he thought.

" _O-ohayo?_ " a voice called out to him.

"Mm...Wh-what just...wait, oh no!" he cried, trying to rise from a bed. He winced.

"Ouch!" he cried again. "What the..."

" _Ohayo gozaimasu_ ," somebody greeted him. A slim-looking person knelt to his right. Vaguely conscious, he realized that the figure stopped him, then made him lie down still.

He blinked, trying to get his eyes to focus. He knew that he heard something, a few Japanese words. He tried to remember: "morning" and "good morning" were what he thought he heard. The hands felt soft, like those of a girl...a girl...

"G-good morning!" he responded, barely conscious enough to see the figure on his right. The figure blinked, and Mason realized that it was a girl.

"O-oh!" the girl said, a little alarmed. "E-En-Engrish, right?"

"Oh, hi," Mason said again, thinking that she did not hear him greet her.

"Oh, _hai_!" the girl replied back, smiling. Mason blinked, then remembered that "hi" to her sounded like " _hai_ ," Japanese for "yes."

He smirked.

"Yes," he said. "And you?"

"M-me?" the figure asked. "Oh, he-hello? Me is Nishizumi Miho."

Miho Nishizumi looked just like how he remembered her in the anime. She looked like a nicely figured girl, with short, light brown hair and light skin. Her equally light brown eyes, however, radiated a type of charm and warmth that attracted him even before meeting her face-to-face. She also wore the same green-and-white uniform characteristic of her school. She looked so real...

"Hello?" she asked. " _Ohayo_?"

"Oh!" Mason apologized. "Sorry about that!"

"Sorry?" she asked again.

"Eh," he hesitated. He rarely talked to girls before, except with his own family.

"So," he tried again, this time changing the topic. "How did you get here?"

"We," she began to speak, but hesitated. "We...We not know...We just see portal thing and go in in."

Mason smirked. Apparently, she was trying to say: "We do not know. We just saw a strange portal and went inside."

"Anyway, greetings," he said. "Nishizumi Miho, I am-ouch!"

His back hurt, and Mason vaguely remembered that he fell down. Somebody apparently broke his fall, but his back hit something hard. That was the last thing he remembered before ending up in the room.

"You hurt," Miho said. "Stay down. We help you."

" _A-arigato_ ," Mason said, lying down. "Not Japanese, but I can speak very few words, such as thank you in your language."

"OK," she nodded, smiling. That smile made him feel something.

"Alright," he said. "Let me nap then."

He closed his eyes, but kept his ears wide open. He could hear Miho sighing in relief.

"Is he asleep?" asked a girl, sliding the door open and coming in. Mason could tell who it was. Saori Takebe sure had a cheerful voice, and he could tell that she was concerned for him, as well. He heard wooden creaks on the floor, and deduced that he was inside the motel. It was obviously at least Japanese in design.

"I guess so," Miho replied. "He closed his eyes. I managed to save him from falling down, but somehow he stumbled backwards so much, he actually hit his back on the hood of the car."

They said everything in Japanese, so Mason could not even know what was going on. He guessed that he fell on the ground, the solid, asphalt parking lot.

 _That makes sense_ , he thought to himself. _Uf! That really hurt! But I do recall falling on something soft, too..._

"So," Saori continued. "Miporin, what are we going to do? We're helping him to recover, and I searched his car. Fortunately, it was unlocked, but I did not find any _keitai denwa_."

Mason suddenly began to sweat, gulping silently.

 _Oh_ , he realized. _I forgot to bring that! I was wondering what I forgot to bring today..._

He knew that Saori was talking about his cell phone. Apparently, he forgot to bring it. He did, however, bring his wallet.

 _Wait_ , he realized. _Where is my wallet?_

"But I found this," Saori said. Mason peeked with his right eye, opening it a little.

"That's mine!" Mason suddenly roared, making the girls jump.

"Wow!" Miho reacted.

"Eek!" Saori screeched.

"So-sorry," Mason apologized profusely. He raised his body, but stayed in a sitting posture.

"Seriously!" Saori groaned, as she gave the wallet back. "You almost gave us a heart attack, American boy!"

"Sorry," Mason admitted. "I just did not want anyone to grab my wallet. A habit I developed when somebody tried to steal it before."

He looked up. Saori Takebe also looked like herself in the anime and manga; she sported long, orangish hair with light brown eyes. She still wore her black thigh highs, and her usual uniform of her school, the same school Miho went to.

"Oh," Saori said. "Sorry about me, too. Hey there, cool boy!"

Mason blushed. Nobody called him "cool boy" before.

"I am just a normal guy," he said, waving a little. "But my name is Mason Paine."

"Paine, huh?" Saori said. "You must have been in a world of pain after that fall."

"No-no," he said, realizing his mistake. "In America, we say our first name first, then last name."

"Oh!" both girls responded.

"Wait!" Saori cried out. "We're in the US?"

"Yes," Mason answered, and clapped his ears shut as a deafening yell rang out.

"AWESOME!" Saori jumped up and down. "Hollywood! Handsome boys!"

"That why you say Engrish?" Miho asked.

"Yes," Mason answered, wincing a little from the scream.

"So," Miho said, while Saori was still shaking with joy. "We're in America, so you are Mason."

"Yes," he replied. "And you're Miho, as you introduced earlier."

"And you sure can speak English well," remarked Mason to Saori, who apparently was too happy to listen.

"She happy," Miho giggled. "And you are?"

"I am Mason," he said, reaching out his hand. "Oh! Sorry, we do handshakes here."

Miho giggled, and gave him her handshake. Mason could not tell whether this was embarrassing, or just so awesome.

"Saori-chan!" Miho told her friend, who stopped and sat down, still bouncing with joy. "This is my friend, Saori."

"Hello there," Mason began. "I am-"

"HE'S AWAKE?!"

All three jumped, as three more people entered through the white, translucent door. A girl with puffy hair, a girl with a tall, noble posture, and a sleepy girl came in. The last girl kept swaying back and forth.

"Mako!" Saori groaned, her happy face now pouting. "Pull yourself together! It's 9:00AM, you know?"

To his surprise, Mason heard her say all of that in perfect English.

"I not know Engri-shi well," Mako sarcastically answered. Saori pouted.

"So," Mako said to Mason. "Hoowwww is yoouuurrr daayyyy?"

Mason could not help but smile and giggle, as Mako not only spoke English well, but also slurred it, fitting for a sleepy girl like her.

"Hi there!" Yukari cried out, saluting him. "Do you like tanks?"

Mason chuckled.

"Hello," he said. "Yukari, I am not into tanks. But hi there, Yukari, Hana, and Mako...What?"

Everybody stared at him.

"How..." Saori began.

"You us manes?" Hana asked.

"Not manes," Mason said. "Names. Well, it's a long story to tell."

"So, Mason," Yukari said. "How do you know our names?"

Mason fidgeted.

"Well," he wondered how to explain this. Of course, he lived in a world where Japan had no Senshadou whatsoever, and that the girls were now in a foreign nation called the US. What could he do? He hated to lie, but he thought that the girls were not ready yet for the truth.

He decided to say something that he already noticed before, and blurted it out.

"Girls," he said. "Do you need bigger clothing?"

All five girls looked down at their uniforms, and blushed.

"I close my eyes," he replied, his eyes shut. "I...I think...OK, please explain."

"Explain what?" asked Mako, still red in the face.

"Please explain," said Mason. "Why are you girls taller than usual?"

All five looked at each other. They already could tell that they had grown, but...

"Well," said Miho. "W-we went that portal, and here we now."

"We went through a strange portal," Saori said. "It was a purplish-red thing, and when we ended up here, we suddenly felt taller than usual!"

Mason blinked. So, the purplish-red thing was real, after all.

"Well," Hana said. "I, no, we grow some centipedes aftor that."

"Hana-san," Saori said. "It's centimeters, not centipedes."

Hana sighed.

"I never good in Engrish," Hana admitted.

"B-but yeah!" Yukari said. "Now, our clothes no fit!"

"As if we grew," Saori sighed. "But I don't get it! Why did we grow here? I feel as if the portal pulled a prank on us!"

"How tall are you girls? Mason asked.

"158 cm," said Miho.

"Me and Yukari are 157," said Saori.

"163 cm," replied Hana.

"145," Mako barely said it out. "Before we grew taller."

"I am 178 cm tall," Mason replied, standing up.

"Are you OK?" asked Miho and Saori.

"I am fine," he declared. "I guess I fainted from being so happy, if you know what I mean. Sorry to scare you girls before."

He stood up, and compared himself to the girls.

"Wow," he admitted. "Miho, you're as tall as I am."

"Real?" asked Miho.

"Yes, you..." he began, but was cut short when his eyes wandered down at their bare stomachs...

"Don't look, pervert!" Saori yelled, covering her midriff.

"Hey!" Mason said. "Is it my fault? You girls are taller than even I expected!"

"How tall?" asked Mako.

"You don't know?" Mason asked, tilting his head to the left. "At least 10 cm tall, it appears."

"Ten centi-wait-wait-WAIT!" Saori yelled. "At least 10?! How do you know?"

"Do you have a measuring thing or something?" he asked. "A scale or something? I don't know the name, but they used it to measure heights."

The young people looked around.

"Oh, look!" Mason pointed. All girls looked. On a corner of the room was a stadiometer.

"Great!" he said, walking towards it. "Now, we can measure, and look! There is also a measuring tape to check your body measurements!"

"We will," said Saori. "But no peeking!"

"Except for the heights," said Mason, smirking.

"OK," Saori said, rolling her eyes.

"178 cm still," Mason groaned, seeing his measurement. "I thought I was still growing!"

"And I am..." Miho said, as she went up on the gauge.

"178 cm!" Saori declared, whistling. "20 cm taller!"

"That means..." Yukari noted, as Saori measured herself. "You are 177, and I am too!"

"You are," Hana noted, as Yukari gave a high five to Saori. "And I must be..."

"183 cm," Mako observed. "Super-tall girl, eh?"

Hana blushed.

"And I am 165," said Mako nonchalantly. "Nice height there. Same as the taller girls back in Oarai."

"You don't seem bothered by that," Mason remarked.

"I already can tell," Mako said, with a slight smirk.

"OK!" Mason said, clapping to get their attention. "Alright, now that we all know our heights and such, what are we going to do?"

"We need to get clothing," said Miho.

"Correct!" Mason agreed. "But can it be anything?"

"Any clothing will do," Yukari said. "As long as we have something to fit us. Then, we can go out and buy our own clothing."

The others agreed.

"Alright, then!" Mason said, stretching. "So, who's going to buy the clothing? All five sets for you all?"

All five looked at him.

"What?" he asked.

* * *

 **Very awkward, huh? A boy having to buy girls' clothing...He sure needs to deal with this!**

 **Anyway, please review me for advice, and especially PM me if you want me to respond with answers to your questions. I live in the Eastern Standard Time, so please keep that in mind.**


	6. Chapter 6: Shop and Fight

**So, the previous chapter was supposed to be longer, but I decided that I said enough, and I wanted to publish that sooner. Here is the fun part: Mason dealing with his new friends...**

 **And on a side note, I find out that I am updating on average one chapter per week! Wow! I did not expect to be that! So, please review and PM, this chapter and other chapters, plus let others know about it!**

 **And don't forget to check out "Amazon Vor!" co-authored with Trex98!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Shop and Fight**

"What am I doing?" Mason said to himself, staring up at a huge sign above him.

It was Saturday afternoon, and Mason just left the motel a few hours ago. Fortunately, his mom was out yesterday, and assumed that he was safely home. Mason decided not to tell her about what happened today or yesterday. However, he had an even bigger problem in mind:

"A boy trying to buy girls' clothing," he said to himself. "In a girls' clothing store."

The sign above him read:

GIRLS FOREVER! BE THE HAPPIEST YOU CAN BE!

"For girls, yes," he replied at the sign. "For me, no."

He tried to walk towards the store, but his feet refused.

"Feet," he said calmly. "Move."

They did not.

"Please move."

They refused.

"OK," he said to himself. "Maybe an invisible barrier is in the way? In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, be gone!"

He flew his hands around, like a martial artist from a weird anime that featured a monkey-like human who loved to fire lasers at people with his hands.

"Hai-ya!" he screamed out. "There, done!"

He smiled, and fixed his clothing to get ready to go in.

"What a weird boy," he heard a whisper to his right.

Paling, he slowly turned around. A group of girls gossiped among themselves, as they entered the Girls Forever store. They gave me a few looks before disappearing into the abyss. He gulped.

"I cannot believe that I am doing this," Mason sighed, and managed to force his feet to follow the girls into the forbidden territory.

* * *

Mason Paine sighed again, gulping at the interior. Everything was bright and shiny, befitting a truly American high-end store.

"I don't want to see everything," he said to himself, as he looked around. "OK, shiny and bright, which girls like, I suppose."

"May I help you?" a female customer service agent asked. She sat behind the desk, staring at him. It was obvious that she was curious as to why a teenage boy is in a girls' clothing store.

"Uh-uh...yes, eh-eh...hello! I am Ma-no-no! Sorry, I am wondering...oh, forget it!" he tried to say, but decided to give her his paper note.

"What is this, sir?" she asked, looking at the note.

"A list of five girls and their sizes," he said, blushing redder and redder. "Five girls need clothing, so they gave me a complete listing of their measurements. But...I-I am..."

"OK..." she replied. An awkward silence stood between the two of them; it felt like hours. Mason fidgeted a little, trying to look calm. The female agent tried to maintain her composure, but even she sweated a little.

"I," she began. "I...will take you to that section."

 _She apparently is nervous_ , Mason thought. _Eek, let's just finish this, and leave!_

Mason followed the agent, who kept looking around. A few women stared at both of them, and she and Mason both walked rapidly away.

"H-here is your section," said the agent.

"W-wait!" Mason said, as the agent was about to walk away. "I-I don't know which clothes to choose!"

"Same here!" she curtly replied, and sort of ran away. Mason sighed.

"She was quite nervous," he said to himself. "Who can blame her? If I was a meaner guy, I would have complained about bad customer service, but I understand why she did that. Let's see..."

He checked the section. Above was the "Complete Girls' Section." Girls Forever stores are interesting in that they provide not only individual clothing, but also entire sets of clothing. Hence, it makes it easier for someone like Mason to find all the clothing he needs, in the same areas.

Still...

"Good thing," he said to himself. "That this section shows the measurements of bodies that they can fit into! And all sets come with underwear. Wait."

Mason shook his head.

"I cannot believe it," he said to himself. "I have to buy even underwear for the girls..."

A teenage girl with blond hair suddenly popped out of nowhere, right next to where Mason was, as he was searching the sets.

"Oh," she cried out.

"Ah," he responded.

A very awkward silence followed.

"Eh..." Mason was about to say, but the girl gave him a weird look, and walked away.

"Good thing she's not my girlfriend," he mumbled, as he looked around the rows after rows of sets.

"Now, let's see..." he kept looking around. "OK, Lord Jesus, I am going to just pick the clothing sets. Pray that I will choose the right ones for my girl-no, _female_ friends. **Female** friends! Don't even think about making them my girlfriends, please! OK!"

He breathed, and kept breathing in and out until he calmed down.

"Alright," he finally said. "Let's go."

* * *

"What's taking him so long?" asked Saori, checking the clocks in their room.

All five girls hanged around in their house. Miho kept on the lookout, watching intently for that same white car to come back. Saori checked her equipment, polishing and inspecting her cooking utensils. Hana collected a few wildflowers from nearby, and arranged them into an ikebana work. Mako lied down on the tatami floor, sleeping. Yukari, however, was rocking back and forth.

"No Internet?" Yukari groaned. "I have nothing to look! No tanks in sight, either!"

"And not that many flowers," said Hana, as she arranged her plants into a work of art. "Ha...Not the right type, either."

"And no cute boys to talk to!" Saori cried out.

"Nothing of interest?" Mako asked.

"Mako!" Saori said. "I thought you're asleep!"

"Too bored to sleep," she replied. Miho and Saori gave raised an eyebrow.

"Got too much sleep," she said. "Now, I cannot sleep, and there is nothing to do. I cannot sleep to keep boredom away, so I am just too bored to sleep."

"I am not getting what you're saying," said Saori.

"It looks like," said Miho. "That all of us are not in a good mood, right?"

"Right," everybody said unanimously, in a tired voice.

"We have to wait still," Miho said, resulting in moans from Saori and Yukari. "Well, I don't know what to do, except just stare at the road."

She glanced at the road, leading down and down, disappearing into the woods below. Above, the road apparently connected to a paved road that winded around another mountain. "We still have to keep an eye out."

"OK..." everybody answered with a weary eye and voice. Miho sighed, but smiled.

All four girls stood with Miho at her outpost, watching the roads. A gentle breeze blew over them, calming them a little. The trees swayed in the wind, while the birds around chirped and sang. Hana sniffed the air, and Saori sneezed.

"Atchoo!" she cried out. "Man, is the air so weird or what?"

"It's pollen," Hana said. "I never smelled so much pollen in my life."

"What pollen is it?" asked Miho.

"Pines, plenty of pines," Hana said. "We have pines in Japan, but not this many."

"Welcome to America," Yukari chimed in. "It's what Mason would say."

"Are you into him?" asked Saori.

"N-no!" Yukari said. "If I am, I would say more than that!"

Saori smirked, while the others giggled.

"Well," Miho said. "Let's just keep watch."

* * *

"Is he coming?" asked Saori. The five girls kept staring on the horizon, watching the road.

"Not yet," Miho replied.

"Is he coming yet?" asked Yukari.

"Not here, still," Miho replied.

"Is he here?" asked Hana.

"He is not here, still," Miho replied.

"Is that boy coming yet?" asked Mako.

"Well, he's not here yet," Miho replied.

"Is he even coming?!" asked Saori.

"Um, he's still not here," Miho replied, smiling sheepishly.

Then, her eyes noticed a flash of white.

"He's here!" she said out aloud.

"Finally!" Yukari, Saori, and Mako all roared, with the first two jumping for joy. Hana calmly stood by, holding her hands together in a gesture of prayer.

"Finally," Hana said, almost as if dreaming. "Mason Paine is finally here..."

"He is," Miho declared, smiling. The unmistakable flash of the Honda Accord sedan appeared like a white bullet in the distance. Soon, it vanished in the middle of the winding road; the girls understood that the car had to go through a densely covered road. After a few minutes, the girls finally heard the roar of the tires, crashing and crunching tree saplings and weeds along the dirt road.

The sedan moved up to the parking lot, stopping right in front of the motel. Mason stumbled out, breathing heavily.

"Are you alright?" Miho and the others asked.

"I. Am. Not. Doing. That. Again!" he managed to blurt out. "Hopefully...so."

"Sorry," Miho said, smiling sheepishly, as she tried to transition to English. "Our cloth start rip. Thank you far hard wok."

"So," said Saori, smiling as she laid her hand on Mason's left shoulder. "You know what to do."

He shivered.

"Yup," he said. "I will go to a corner of the lot, and wait until you all are done."

"No," Miho said. "Too mean. Let him sit tatami flour."

"Floor, not flour," said Saori. "And make sure you take off your shoes!"

"Hey!" Mason said. "I am half-Asian, you know! I like to walk barefoot in my own house!."

Miho giggled.

"Let's go," Miho said.

* * *

"How long are they taking?" Mason wondered, as birds chirped in the background. The outside air was quite fresh, and Mason noticed fogs descending upon the surrounding areas. He stretched, and yawned.

"I guess it's my turn to wait," he said to himself. He heard giggles and moans in the room behind him. Apparently, the girls chose only one room to use, since it was more than big enough for them.

Tired, he stood up and checked around the building again, just for fun. He suddenly stopped, and raised an eyebrow.

"Wait," he began. "When did this building begin-"

"AHHHHHH!" came the scream of the only girl who would scream like that.

"Saori!" Mason called out. "Careful not to attract anyone's attention!"

"What's this clothing?!" Saori screamed, blasting through the shoji door, almost destroying it. The door moaned, but glad to be intact.

"I bought it," said Mason. "Based on what I know about you girls."

"And this?!" Saori pointed at herself. "Is what you thought I would wear?"

He shrugged, as the others came out of their room.

Saori wore a white polo shirt, but was apparently smaller than Mason thought. Hence, her midriff was still showing. Saori kept pushing it down.

"At least you got these blue short shorts," Saori admitted. "They make me look cute."

"We call them hotpants," Mason said. "And they seem more popular than dresses in America."

"You have sum flashy," Hana tried to say, spinning around to check herself. Her light blue-and-pink sundress had a slight glitter in the sunlight, complete with her wide-brimmed, golden sun hat.

"Sunny girl, eh?" Mako remarked, checking her own T-shirt and light blue hotpants. In the middle was a picture of yellow "ZZZZZ"

"Nice taste!" Yukari said, fixing her red sport cap. She checked her white T-shirt, blue jacket, and blue jeans. Mason suddenly realized that she looked like some stupid guy who summons a yellow rodent-like monster to fight...

"Did you...get these?" Miho asked.

"Oh?" Mason asked, blinking. "Oh, yes...Hehe."

Miho wore a golden blouse with bright blue jacket on top, and a frilly white, short skirt with blue hotpants underneath. She also wore a bright red flower ribbon on her head.

"You put a little effort into hers, huh?" Saori asked, punching him lightly in the right side. "Sweet pervert."

"Well," Mason said. "Yes, I did."

"Nice try with shopping," said Yukari. "I am impressed with your sense of fashion!"

"T-thanks," Mason said, blushing. "My first try. So, what are we going to do next?"

"Let's go shopping!" Saori said.

"What?" Mason asked.

"Shopping!" Saori said. "Now that we have the right type of clothing on, we can go out there and find more clothing to wear! Plus, we need to furnish our room with some things."

"OK," Miho agreed. "Girls, we go. Do you mind, Mason-san?"

"Just call me Mason," he said, and both of them blushed. "L-let's just go."

"O-OK!" she said. "Girls, let's go, panzer vor!"

"Yay!" everybody joined in, except Mason.

"Y-yay..." Mason then joined in, very reluctantly. "Here I go again..."

* * *

"Squeeze in, girls," Mason said, as they entered his sedan. "It's a little small for six of us."

"Ow!" Saori said, as she, Yukari, Hana, and Mako all piled in the back seat.

"Feels tight," Yukari said. "Man, did that sudden growth also affect our butts?"

"I-Is mine too big?" Saori said, panicking a little.

"Calm down," Hana said. "You're not the only one with a slightly bigger bot."

"Butts, not bot," Saori said. "And I am going on a diet after this!"

"No, Saori-chan. Make sure you hold that back," said Mason, as he revved up the engine. The rather old but perfectly functional car barely coughed, as its engine roared with power and energy.

"This is America," he told her. "So get ready for some feasting."

"Oh no..." Saori groaned. Hana tilted her head, curious.

"What is feast?" Hana asked. All five others stared at her in disbelief.

"Let's...not go there," Mason said, as he directed his car. The tires made cracking and groaning noises, as the asphalt and the occasional stones on the parking lot made futile efforts to resist. They gave up, as the tires crushed them into smithereens.

The sedan went down the road, rocking back and forth as it tore through new growths on the road.

"Uf!" some of the girls groaned, as they hit against the windows.

"You OK?" Miho asked them. She was the only girl in the front seat; all four others sat tight in the back.

"Back seat for three," said Yukari. "Not four!"

"Get on lap," Hana motioned to Mako. Mako sat on her lap instantly. Yukari and Saori sighed in relief. Yukari sat on left seat, with Saori on the right. Despite being the tallest in her group, Hana sat in the center, with Mako on her lap.

"Getting there..." he said. "Finally, we're out!"

The car climbed up into the paved road, the tires kissing the asphalt with a smooth feel. Mason then started to speed up.

"Finally!" Saori said. "We were tired and bored there! Nothing in that building!"

"Well," Mason said. "At least I think you can sleep there."

"Sleep there?!" Saori cried, aghast.

"Well," Mason reasoned. "At least a place to live in is better than nothing."

"Good point," Yukari said. "We're in America, and we...are not Americans."

"Yes," he said. "It's better to live there; hotel spaces here are expensive, and our nation just had a mortgage issue that made so many things expensive these days..."

Saori worked furiously to translate Mason's words to her friends, and then the girls started what Mason thought was "girl's talk."

"Anything to do in America?" Saori asked.

"Wonder if they have tanks?" Yukari wondered.

"I heard that they have plenty of flowers to buy," Hana said, albeit in Japanese.

"Just a good place to sleep," Mako groaned.

The only girl who did not join in was Miho. Miho kept staring in the distance; Mason could tell that she was thinking hard.

 _It's a brave new world out there_ , Mason thought. _Miho, I hope you're ready_.

As the girls continued talking among themselves, Mason thought about what was going on...

 _I am in my own car, for the first time driving not one, but five girls to where I live. I thought my life was so happy and content, even though it was far from perfect. Now, I don't know whether this is the best day of my life, or the worst..._

"Mason-san?" Miho asked.

Mason blinked.

"Eh?" he asked.

"Why did you stop?" Miho asked.

"Oh!" he realized, as he pushed the accelerator. The car groaned, then continued to drive forward.

"Sorry," he said. "Whenever I think about something deep enough, I slow down. But I didn't know that I actually stopped. First time that happened; man, that was dangerous."

"So," said Saori. "Where are we?"

"We are in North Carolina," Mason replied. "But very close to the northern border of South Carolina. That mountain we're at is more of a huge hill, but it's unusual in being farther away from most of the mountains in the Appalachians."

"The Appalachians?" the girls asked.

"The Blue Ridge?" Mason gave another name.

"Oh!" the girls recognized.

"Yes, we're in the East Coast," said Mason. "I guess most of you heard of New York, right?"

All five nodded. He smirked, as he drove downhill towards a distinct stop.

"Let's stop there," he said. "It's one of my favorite spots."

* * *

"And this is why I stop here," he said, as he and the girls filed out of the car.

"Wow!" all girls gazed in wonder. The stop consisted of a small parking lot, with a stone wall to protect anyone from falling down. Leaning on the wall, the girls stared at the wondrous landscape.

The valley before them seemed to stretch beyond the horizon, stopped only by the magnificent mountains in front of them. The mountains before them appeared noble, clothed in a dense blanket of fog.

"The mountains," Saori noted. "They look weird."

"Yup," Mason said. "According to scientists, the Appalachians were formerly much, much higher in the past. Due to erosion and age, and all those scientific reasons, the mountains look more like gigantic hills. If you girls think 'mountains,' the Rockies are more like them."

"Where are the Rockies?" asked Yukari.

"Known as the Rocky Mountains, they are far away, on the other side of the Appalachians or the Blue Ridge," explained Mason. "Oh! See there?"

He pointed at one mountain, and the others looked.

"Finally," he admitted. "I see it; that is Mount Mitchell, the highest mountain in the Appalachians."

"Eh?" Saori raised an eyebrow. "It still looks like a giant hill."

"It does look taller than others," Miho noted. "But it looks like a dome."

"It was called the Black Dome, due to its shape," Mason said.

"So many forests!" Hana remarked. "And so green..."

"And so many farms!" Saori yelled, looking down. Squares after squares of farms dotted the valley below, separated by strips of green forests.

"And look!" Yukari screamed, so loud that others backed away. Even Hana moved a step away.

"A military base!" Yukari pointed. Others looked. In the distance, nearby the mountains in front of them, a rigidly structured area of buildings with airstrips and giant warehouses stood ominously, surrounded by fences.

"Yes," said Mason. "That is a military base. I think it was the...I forgot the name."

"Fort Bragg?" Yukari asked. "I heard it is the largest military installation in the world!"

"How did you say that so well?" asked Saori. "You sound more English than Japanese when you said that!"

"Hehe," she blushed. "I am a military fanatic, remember? I am not just into tanks."

"Oh!" Mason said, remembering. "That's not Fort Bragg."

Yukari groaned.

"Aren't we in NC?" she asked. And it sure looked like Fort Bragg."

"It's not," he said. "But it is somewhere in the distance. It's not in this area, but honestly, that base is weird."

"Weird?" the girls asked.

"Good thing you all can speak and understand English well," he remarked. "I am surprised that you all adapted so well already! OK, ahem! That installation there is Fort Corpa."

"Fort Corpa?" asked Yukari. "I've studied many military bases, especially those in the US. But Fort Corpa?"

"Never heard it?" asked Mason.

"Nope," everybody replied.

"It is a new one," he admitted. "Just built about four years ago. I met veterans back years ago, and still now. I keep asking them about the base. I get one of two responses."

"I confused," Hana said.

"I used complex words, I guess," said Mason, as Saori proceeded to translated some words for her.

"What do they say?" asked Yukari.

"Either they change the topic," answered Mason. "Or admit that they don't know why it's there."

"Huh?" the girls asked.

"It is a military base," he said. "But it emits an aura of mystery that reminds me of Area 51. I don't think it's Area 51, but if even the veterans don't know, then it sure is interesting."

Saori worked furiously to translate Mason's words to Hana. Hana nodded, now understanding what Mason was saying.

"OK!" Mason said, stretching. "I think it's time to just go. I am feeling a little tired."

The others nodded, as they filed back into the car.

Mason revved up his engine.

"Uh oh," he realized. "I am running low on gas."

"A-are you OK?" Saori said, nervous.

"Calm down," said Miho. "Any place for gas?"

"Oh!" Mason remembered. "There is a small town nearby. New Clifford is quite the minor tourist place, because so many tourists end up there, underestimating their own gas supply. I know a few friends there, too!"

"Go ahead!" Yukari said in a loud voice.

"Haha!" Mason replied. "You sound like Kay!"

She blushed, and whispered something inaudible.

"Oh sorry," he said.

 _Oh,_ he thought to himself. _So, the girls seem to still act like in their own world. Anime world in the real world...How crazy can it get?_

* * *

"Here we are," he said, coming down the mountain. The road turned into a fresh set of real-black asphalt, the result of recent renovation efforts. Above the roads, the small town of New Clifford looked quite peaceful but alive. Three gas stations lined the only intersection in town, flanked by at least five restaurants. It was obviously a town that attracted tourists.

"It sure looks busy," Miho noted, seeing a good number of cars in all three stations.

"Typical day here," Mason explained. "New Clifford has been blessed lately, due to being in the right place at the right time. Almost everyday, drivers overestimate their gas supply, and end up coming here just to refill. And the local businesses take advantage of that."

"But," he said, pulling into a local gas station called the BBQ Gassy Gas."Of the three, this is my favorite."

"Hullo there!" a voice boomed from the store. The girls were startled, and shut their doors tight.

"Oh..." Mako groaned, barely waking up due to the door slamming on her right knee. "Are we there yet?"

Mason shook his head, but smiled as he got up. The source of the voice crashed out of the door, and marched towards his car.

"Not yet!" said a slightly overweight man with a thick, white beard and a huge smile, as he stomped out. His tanned skin glowed golden in the sunlight. He walked towards the right side of the sedan, and noticed Mako half-awake.

"Hey there, lazybones!" the man boomed into the car; the right windows were open, so his voice echoed loud and clear into the interior. Mako shivered, and rapidly woke up.

"Wa-wa-wah?" she stammered.

"Ho-ho-ho!" the large man declared. "So, Mason, you got some boo-boo's?"

"Boo...boo's?" the girls asked.

"Nevermind!" Mason waved off, blushing. "So, Mr. Tapper, what are you up to?"

"Oh, nothing," he said, putting a strange card into the gas machine. "But good luck on your travel!"

"Thank you," Mason answered, giving a little nod.

"Cheating?" asked Mako. Miho and the other girls looked at her, then at Mason.

"Nope," he replied. "But he likes me enough to give me a discount. Gas is quite expensive right now."

"Exponsov?" asked Hana.

"Not cheap," he answered.

"Oh!" she replied, blushing.

"So, anyway," said Saori, as Mason was filling the gas. "What are we going to do?"

"I dunno," he began. "We can-"

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, YOU ******!"

A very loud, nasty voice roared through the town. The girls looked at the direction of the voice. A bulking man with pale skin and giant biceps pushed back another man. That man also had pale skin, but was taller and slimmer than the muscular guy. Between them was another man, with skin as dark as a tree trunk.

"What do you do, you black sympathizer?" roared the same man, cracking his knuckles. Miho noticed a strange sign on his right arm.

"Is that Kuromorimine sign?" Miho asked.

"No no," he replied, shaking his head. "Wait, that iron cross thing?"

"Huh?" Miho asked.

"Look below that," he told her, and she did. She gasped.

She noticed a black swastika.

"And there's nothing bad," said the slim white. "Of giving money to the poor."

"Poor my ****," the muscular white roared. "How dare you break your promise!"

"What promise?" asked the slim white. To the girls' surprise, the slim white suddenly held a prideful smirk on his face.

"He's lying," Miho whispered to Mason.

"How can you tell?" asked Mason.

"His eyes flicked," Miho said.

"You pretend to forget?" the muscular white roared. "I cannot believe that you told me that you'll pay me back! And you later called that you had no money. And you put those bills into that ****'s bucket!"

"He needs it more than you," said the slim white, fixing his fancy suit. "You *****."

The two went at it. The muscular man charged, trying to punch his thinner foe. The latter, however, dodged and grabbed the man's torso.

"I learned!" the muscular man roared, as he quickly twisted around, and slammed the slimmer guy to the ground.

"Whoops!" the slim guy said, shocking his foe. He ripped off his suit, exposing some homemade cushions inside.

"Protection, huh?" the neo-Nazi growled, and charged again. This time, the slim man took something out, and sprayed it.

"AARRHHHGGHGH!" the neo-Nazi screamed, as the aroma of homemade pepper spray filled the air around him. A few pedestrians nearby noticed the strange cloud, and quickly backed away. A few who were taking pictures also backed away.

The muscular white man collapsed in pain, but soon rose up, panting with eyes partially closed.

"Not done yet!" he roared. The slim white then circled the guy, taunting him with his disgusting smirk.

"I thought he was a good guy," Saori whispered.

"To be honest," said Mason. "I've seen those two fight for a while. At first, I thought that the neo-Nazi was the bad guy, who was targeting that slim white. However, later on, as I kept watching them fight again and again, while waiting for police to intervene, I noticed the slim white's man smirk. His weird smiles made me suspicious."

"And is that it?" asked Saori.

"No," he answered. "I later learned that the slim white guy framed the neo-Nazi for a crime he did not commit. Due to his background, the neo-Nazi was charged. That slim white guy also is not known to be nice around here; he frequently puts money into the beggars' cans, but the beggars themselves throw away the money away."

"Why?" asked Yukari.

"Fake money," Mason replied. "I checked the bills and coins."

"And that is real money this time!" the neo-Nazi roared, still reeling in from the pain of the spray.

"So be it," the slim white grinned, dodging the neo-Nazi's moves. "You're going to police, and I will be free."

"And give bad money to the ***** black ***** people!" the muscular neo-Nazi roared. "You-you call yourself good? Look! That black man who got the money even threw your money."

He was telling the truth. The girls gasped, as the black person with the money silently threw away the counterfeit money into a nearby trash can. The slim guy just rolled his eyes.

"Stupid black," he retorted. "It's his fault."

"And you do that?" the neo-Nazi roared. "You self-righteous idiot!"

"And you're the criminal," the slim white mocked him. "You lazy bonehead; only you will be caught again."

"Not so fast," a girl's voice echoed. Both men looked at the girl, and raised their eyebrows.

Mason and the girls gasped.

"Stop. Right. There," Miho declared, crossing her arms together. Her cute, sweet face had a serious edge to it. Her brown eyes flashed with determination.

"I not white," she said. "But Nazi, no. Fake money, no."

"Little girl," the neo-Nazi said, cracking his knuckles. "You watch your words."

"How do you know I give fake money?" asked the slim white. "I am innocent."

"He gave it," she said, flicking out the fake coin, while the black stood by her side.

"And what are you going to do?" asked the slim white.

"Give to police," she answered. The slim white lost his grin.

"Give it back," he said. "It's mine."

"You two want fight?" asked Miho. "Go ahead."

Mason and the girls gasped.

"I will take you, loudmouth," the neo-Nazi said, pushing the slim white out of the way. "You sure have very white skin, for a non-white girl."

"Punch me," she said, and he punched. However, Miho gracefully dodged, and put the man into a judo throw.

"Ouch!" the neo-Nazi roared. "I-I am six feet tall! How-how could a smaller girl take me down? Oh...Oh!"

"Scaredy-cat," the slim white. "Brain, not brawn, wins the day."

"And you," Miho said. "Watch your mouth."

"Watch yours, you sneaky boo-boo," he said, shaking up his spray. Miho noticed something underneath the spray; his other hand held something.

"Dodge this!" he roared, but Miho already dodged his attack. She dashed to a nearby trash can, picked up the lid, and swung it around as a shield, just as the slim person charged in. It blocked his spray, but also blocked something else: pieces of glass and an empty hypodermic needle fell unto the ground. Mason gasped.

"Are you kidding me?" he gasped. "The rumor was true; he's a drug seller."

"Clever girl," the slim white growled, trying to reach into his pockets for something. "And-ouch!"

Miho threw the lid at him, knocking him down. It did not help that the lid still held the vestige of the pepper spray, and the man accidentally touched the lid, and wiped his own face with his own hands.

"Arrghh!" he groaned. "My eyes! My, eyes!"

Miho shook her head.

"Behave," she simply said, as she walked back to her friends. A police cruiser arrived, and two officers came out to arrest the men.

"You're free to go," Mr. Tapper said. "We'll take care of the rest."

"Mr. Tapper," began Mason. "But the police want to-"

"Your friend did more than enough," said Mr. Tapper, winking. "We'll pretend ignorance and hide for you. This is our way of gratitude, for your hard work."

"T-thank you," said Mason, as he and his friends loaded back into the car. He started to rev his engine, as the officers questioned the men. He could hear them argue:

"I swear!" the drug seller argued. "I am innocent!"

"You innocent?" the neo-Nazi roared. "Now, who's innocent now, you-uf!"

"Hold your horses," said the police officer. "You two are under arrest, for public disorderly conduct and for endangering other people."

"You," the other officer pointed at the neo-Nazi. "Will be charged with battery."

"And you," the officer said to the drug seller. "Will be charged with possession of drugs, and for wielding a weapon in the public."

As Mason drove, he could hear a huge cursing from the two suspects, as the officers struggled to restrain them. Three more cruisers sped by Mason's car, as he continued to drive away from the scene.

"Why did he do that?" asked Saori. "Letting you go?"

"Police in the US love to make you wait," said Mason. "Mr. Tapper himself got caught by police a couple of times; the one thing that he hated the most was the waiting period. He knew that even if you do good, the police make you wait, wait, and wait."

"So," said Yukari. "You good?"

"Yup," he said, looking at Miho. Miho lost her serious look; her face returned back to its sweet appearance.

"Nice fight," Mason complimented. Miho and Mason both looked at each other, then turned away quickly. Both had blushes on their faces, with Miho's rendering her whole face bright red.

"So," said Saori. "What was that fight about?"

"They were two Americans," he explained. "In America, we call them whites. The big guy is a neo-Nazi, if you girls know what that is. The slim guy is actually a con artist, who actually makes a sport out of giving to the poor, only to give them fake money."

"How mean," Hana remarked. "And we know about Nazis; bad, are they?"

"Oh," Mason said, driving into a large highway. "You girls know about Nazis?"

"In our world," said Miho. "We all are familiar with the history of Nazism, although it is something we prefer to avoid talking about."

"That makes sense," Mason said. "Since Kuromorimine is loosely based on Na-wait, based on Germany."

"And what about the other guy?" Yukari asked.

"It's another side of America you girls may not hear," Mason sighed. "The other guy is a drug dealer; he tried to stab Miho with a drug needle."

The girls gasped, while Miho gulped audibly.

"Yup," Mason said. "Great fight there, actually. You used your skills to great use."

"But why let us go?" asked Saori. "I am still curious."

"That is sort of an old town," Mason explained. "In some American towns, the residents like to do 'street justice,' instead of sitting idly by. A few were about to intervene, but Miho pulled amazing moves. In fact, I overheard some of them saying that they'll give us discounts if we come back."

"How strange," said Hana. "But also nice."

"Yup," Mason said, grinning. "Nice indeed."

Suddenly, he noticed a sign, and smiled very wide.

"And welcome to Acta," Mason declared. "We are here."

* * *

 **So, I intended this chapter to be shorter, but felt it needed a little more "meat," in order to make it worth the read. In a way, this chapter could be two in one, but I am happy with how it turned out.**

 **Anyway, please review it, PM me, and support us with more favs and follows! Thank you!**

 **Update: Chapter 7 is coming! And this time, the antagonist will be introduced!**


	7. Chapter 7: The City of Acta I

**Now, we're getting to the city of Acta, the main setting of my story right now! Acta is going to be epic.**

 **Plus, if all goes well, I will sneak in a spoiler alert of sort...**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: The City of Acta I**

The white sedan drove confidently past a sign, painted fresh in white, red, and blue:

WELCOME TO ACTA, THE HIDDEN GEM OF A CITY

"Hidden gem?" asked Yukari.

"An English idiom," said Mason, driving up a rather steep hill, the single two-way road bordered by dense forest on both sides. "A distinct phrase or compound word for something great but not well known."

"Oxymoron?" asked Saori, as she and others stared at the forest. They saw forest back in Japan, but the American forest featured taller, stranger plants. Oaks, pines, and other trees that they do not recognize towered over them. The girls stared, amazed at the beauty and gigantism of the forest.

"You're spot on!" said Mason, as he stopped at a traffic light. "Yes, Acta won multiple awards for being one of the best cities to live in the US, but few know about it."

"Not known?" asked Hana.

"The citizens of Acta," Mason explained, waiting for the light to change. "Chose by referendum to not participate in those 'Best Cities to Live in' competitions. They want to keep things rather 'authentic' and not overtly 'commercialized.'"

"Ah," said Saori, as she hurriedly translated Mason's words for Hana. "It feels nice; I only see trees, though."

"And to be honest," he continued, turning left into a narrow road. "I'll take you somewhere interesting."

"Wait," Miho said, checking the GPS system on Mason's phone. "Where are we going?"

"Good thing I brought my phone from home, this time," he said. "But I will show you something interesting, and it's not on GPS."

The girls looked at each other, but decided to trust Mason.

He drove through a very dense area of forest. Trees larger than anything the girls had ever seen towered over them, bigger than the ones they saw on the highway, surrounded by smaller trees and covered in blankets of vines.

"What are those?" Miho asked, staring up at the trees that looked like skyscrapers.

"Wow!" Saori and Yukari said, gazing at the towering giants above.

"Amazing," Hana replied, enchanted by the beautiful behemoths. Even Mako stared outside, too surprised to sleep.

"The gateway to a new world," Mason said poetically. "Oh yeah, those are the largest trees in this area around. Don't tell anyone, but we call them 'Sequoias of the East.'"

"Wait," Hana said. "They redwoods?"

"The world's tallest tress!" Saori screamed, making Mason wince. He almost drove off-road.

"Saori-chan!" Miho spoke softly but firmly.

"S-sorry," Saori apologized.

"I am OK," he said. "But no, they're not redwoods. They're chestnut trees."

"Chestnut trees?!" all girls responded, aghast. "Chestnuts can grow that big?"

"Haha!" Mason said. "Yes, in the past, the East Coast was covered in these magnificent trees, but a fungal disease wiped out many. They are not endangered, but no longer can grow big and healthy like these. These are the few mature trees that somehow are resistant to that same disease, but the local people here prefer to keep them safe and secret."

"And do you eat their nuts?" Saori asked.

"Oh yes!" he said, actually drooling. "I love chestnuts! In fact, in a few days, we're supposed to have chestnuts here! But back to the point: I am taking to somewhere special!"

He kept driving through the seemingly vast tract of chestnut trees, rising high above them.

"Never see chestnuts this ginormous," said Hana.

"Not this tall," Mason replied. "These are _American_ chestnuts, not the European and Chinese kinds."

"Everything is bigger in America," mumbled Saori.

"Not always," Mason replied, overhearing her. "But here we are."

Mason stopped his car in front of a view that intrigued the girls, who all gasped. In front of them was a huge hill, but covered in colorful houses of various sizes. They all seemed to stack together like colorful Lego buildings, but are punctuated by patches of forest and even farms.

"What is that?" asked Miho.

"Welcome to Nua Rocinha," Mason said. "This is the Brazilian neighborhood, which is more of a favela."

"Favela?" asked the girls. "Brazil?"

"A slum from a nation called Brazil," said Mako. "It's in South America."

"Wait a minute! The nation with the Amazon rainforest?" asked Saori.

Mako nodded.

"But it looks so pretty," said Hana. Mason noticed that her English had remarkably improved; he wondered how she improved so fast.

"Yes," he said, as he drove into the neighborhood. "But don't say 'slum' here. It is less slum and more of a clean neighborhood. The Brazilians here modeled it after the Rocinha favela in Brazil. They say it's cleaner and better than the one in Brazil."

Mason drove through the neighborhood, while all five girls gazed at the scenery. It felt so unreal to them; every street they turn around seemed to reveal different houses, and no two houses looked alike.

"That's one bright blue!" Saori said, pointing at a house. "It looks so _ao_!"

"Blue?" asked Mason, and Saori nodded.

"A black building," remarked Mako, staring at a pitch black structure. "Actually nice."

"Wow," Hana stared at a particularly over-decorated house, covered in vines of flowers and fruits. "What an artwork..."

"Wow!" Yukari screamed, pointing at a remarkably tank-shaped house. It also was colored green and brown, as a camouflage.

"Ah," Mason said, as he drove past that house. "That man there loves tanks, so much that he decides to create his own house, modeled after a tank, but what was that tank again?"

"Maus!" Miho replied. "The houses here are so unique!"

"Brazilians here love to be diverse," said Mason, as he drove up the top of the favela, and then came down. Thousands of people walked the streets, with a large number of children playing a little too close to the streets. He wounded through more streets, and more people started to show up.

"Uh oh," Mason realized. "School is almost done," so I better get out before the traffic jam."

"Not that I care," said Mako. "But isn't today Saturday?"

"Yeah-oh!" Mason understood, as he took a detour. More children started to show up.

"Some people are used to a little too much free time," he said. "Some parents here decided to have 'voluntary school hours,' and they were surprisingly popular among the kids here."

"Eh?" Mako asked. "They like school? How early?"

"6:00 AM," Mason answered. Mako shook her head in disbelief.

As he drove through more streets, he and his group went through another grove of giant chestnut trees.

"Are there chestnuts everywhere?" asked Saori.

"Nope," Mason answered. "Ah, I went into the wrong detour. Roads here sometimes look alike, but I know where I am going."

"Where are we?" asked Miho.

The car went through the chestnut grove, and ended up in an area that looked like a vast valley of clean, grass.

"Little London," Mason answered, swerving into what looked like a vast countryside. Giant mansions surrounded the road like a typical American suburb.

"British?" asked Hana.

"Oh! Good eyes you have," Mason whistled. "These houses are where British Americans love to live in; some actual British from the UK also live here."

"Fancy and rich, huh?" noted Mako.

"Yes," he replied. "Fancy and rich."

After a while, Mason drove out of the neighborhood, entering another grove of chestnut trees.

"Are chestnuts everywhere?" asked Hana.

"Nope," he replied. "This area does. But the next will be different."

He drove through out of the chestnut grove. This time, it was full of maple and peach trees.

"People here," he said. "Joke about finding the Peach Immortality here."

The girls blinked.

"Nevermind," he said. "It's because these peaches keep flowering and bearing fruit all year, which is strange."

"That _is_ odd," said Hana.

"But here is another neighborhood," said Mason. "Our own Chinatown."

The girls gasped at the sight.

"Welcome to Zhongville," he said. "The area where Chinese and Chinese-Americans live. They call it the most 'Chinese' of all Chinatowns in the US."

The girls just nodded their heads, but were gaping at the sight of the buildings, built in the Chinese style, covering a hill and with miniature great walls to match.

"They modeled it after a famous site in China," he continued, not noticing the girls being too amazed to listen. "Wudang Building Complex, if I remember it right."

"Wu-Wudang?" asked Mako, who managed to snap out of her trance. "One of the World Heritage sites?"

"Yes!" said Mason. "I am surprised you know that. But it _is_ very hard to take your eyes off; I forgot that the site looks so exotic."

He traveled through this area. Just like the Nua Rocinha, the streets and bright signs dazzled the girls. Hundreds and thousands of people walked back and forth, while hundreds of people biked through. Few cars were present; it was obvious that bikers ruled the streets.

"Too busy," he mumbled. "Girls, I am getting out of here."

He drove and took another detour. This time, he knew that it was the right road, but chose to go through another road.

"This is where Vin lives," he said.

"Vin?" the girls asked.

"My Filipino friend," he said, grinning. "Welcome to Mini Manila."

Mini Manila was different from the others. After seeing the colorful Nua Rocinha, the super-clean Little London, and the dazzling Zhongville, the Mini Manila was more like a small town. It looked like a group of very casual buildings set together, not too dirty but not really clean-looking, with some litter on the ground. Next to the neighborhood was a large rice terrace, etched into a giant hill.

"A Filipino neighborhood," Mason said. "At first, I thought it was just another casual neighborhood of Acta. But I visited here quite a number of times, so many people here recognize me."

"Good thing or bad?" asked Mako.

"You are spot on," he admitted. "To be honest, it's half-half."

Strange-looking jeeps with blotches of random colors cruised by the sedan. Compared to Mason's car, the jeeps looked awfully odd but charming. They also made strange noises.

"Bad colors," Hana said, wiping her eyes. "I dislike those colors."

"You are really right," Mason admitted.

"Wait a minute!" Yukari realized. "Aren't those 1943 Willys jeeps?"

"You have sharp eyes!" Mason whistled, as Yukari blushed. "They were formerly US military jeeps from the WWII era, just like your tanks. However, after the war ended, US troops in the Philippines sold their extra jeeps to the Filipinos. The Filipinos then modified them, turning them into that."

"At least we did not alter our tanks that drastically," admitted Yukari, almost crying. "Poor jeeps, they look like taxis or buses."

"Exactly," he said, groaning as one of the jeeps stopped in the middle of the street, and a large group of people went out of the back. "Known as jeepneys, these are the most popular form of transportation in the Philippines. The problem is..."

The girls watched, as two more jeepneys stopped right in the middle of the road, and hordes of people came out, and more came in.

"Many of these drivers are pureblood Filipinos, not Filipino-Americans," he explained. "Hence, many of them still do not follow American rules, or even personal common sense. They just focus on transporting people, without thinking about Americans like me. I sometimes get annoyed by them and their...weird driving manners."

The girls nodded in agreement.

"Isn't that dangerous?" Saori asked, as she witnessed another jeepney stop right in the middle of the road.

"Why not honk the horn at them?" suggested Mako.

"Nope," Mason said. "I don't like to; it seems mean."

"You're right," Miho said, smiling. Mason blushed.

"Yeah, sorry for the jam here," he said, as three more jeepneys stopped right in the middle of the road. "Today is unusual; it seems that we have a large number of tourists today."

Despite staying calm, Mason really felt like honking at them.

 _I really want to_ , he thought. _But I am too nice! Anyway, I already said it out, so I am not going to honk, especially in front of Miho..._

By the time all of the jeepneys were gone, one more was about to park. Mason wasted no time; he floored the pedal to avoid getting trapped again.

"Nice," Yukari said.

"Sorry for the jeepneys," he said. "And yes, here we are."

Mason parked his car into a partially weed-covered parking lot; next to it was a strangely colored (blue, yellow, and green splotched all over) building with a painfully bright red sign in yellow letters:

MANGO BAR

"Lame," both Mako and Yukari admitted.

"Yes, it's lame," Mason chimed in, as the girls moved out and he locked the doors. "But at least it's quite peaceful and serves great food."

The group entered the restaurant. It was open all-around, with refreshing breezes entering through doors and windows alike. It looked like a beach stand, with wooden floor, chairs, and tables. About 20 men and women were in the restaurant, and it felt like a typical fast food restaurant in terms of space.

"More wooden," Mako curtly said.

"And tropical," remarked Hana.

"Is this a beach stand?" asked Saori a little loudly. A small group nearby laughed loudly at her. She blushed.

"Hey there!" a voice boomed from the distance. The girls turned around, while Mason slowly turned around, rolling his eyes but smiling.

Three young boys, about the same age as Mason, sat on the corner of the restaurant. The boy who yelled wore a white hoodie and a pair of black sneakers, with blue jeans and red headphones hanging on his neck. His black, messy, and short hair complemented his brown eyes that seemed to droop. He did not look like an enthusiastic guy, so the girls were surprised at his passionate voice. The boy on his left wore a black shirt with yellow words saying, "WHY NOT?", contrasted by his green pants, spiky brown hair, and brown eyes that looked almost feline. The boy on the right, however, wore a blue shirt and sandals, with dark brown eyes that looked calm and normal.

"Hi there!" Mason called out to them, as he walked towards them. The girls followed behind. The three boys suddenly began to whisper among themselves, then spoke to the girls.

"So," said the boy with the black shirt. "You there!"

"Us?" asked Miho.

"Where are you girls from?" asked the boy. "We've seen only a few whites here and there! Right, Mark?"

The girls blinked, tilting their heads in confusion. Mason silently rolled his eyes.

"Oh **** yeah!" the boy with the blue shirt named Mark roared. The girls did a double take.

"It's quite rare to see such white bombshells here in this area!" Mark blurted out.

The girls blinked again, even more confused.

"Say," said Mark, turning to look at Mason with a smirk. "Are you boyfriend with them?"

The girls blinked again, but Saori and Miho blushed red. Mason blushed too.

"Hahahahahahaha!" all three boys in the seats roared with laughter. The girls felt awkward.

"Man," said the boy with the black shirt. The yellow words ("WHY NOT?") etched on it looked a little too much for even Mason, who turned his eyes around temporarily.

"You always were the weird one, Mason!" said the boy with the black shirt.

"Oh please," Mason groaned. "Would you stop that, Anton?"

"Why not?" said Anton, flashing out his shirt with those same yellow words.

"And hi there, Vin," Mason said to the man with the hoodie.

"Hi there!" Vin said very casually. "Say, what's up with your _girl_ -friends?"

Mason blushed, as the three Filipino boys roared with laughter. The girls started to understand what they were saying, and they all felt _odd_.

"Wow," Miho whispered to her friends. "Are they this loud?"

"You there!" Mark cried out. "What's your name, busty girl?"

Miho turned around. "Me-me?" she asked.

"Or should I say," Mark continued. "Jessica _Rabbit_ girl?"

The three boys erupted into laughter, as the girls stared. Mason put his right hand in a facepalm.

"Are they this...open and direct?" asked Miho in a whisper to Mason.

"Jessica Rabbit is a very busty, beautiful woman from an American cartoon or something," Mason explained. "And yes, not all Filipinos are like them, but many are quite open and direct, especially with foreign girls around here."

"But it's a little too open for us," whispered Saori, who shared the same thoughts as Hana. "But why this blunt?"

"Ah, I remember why," Mason said. "They are most open around white girls."

"White girls?" asked the girls.

"American girls," Mason explained.

"Huh?" the girls responded.

"Wait," Miho began. "We're not white, we're-"

"Busty, very busty, busty, average, and flat..." came the voice of Vin.

"Eh?" the girls asked him.

"Vin Martinez," said Mason firmly. "What's up with that? I know what you're saying..."

"Hmmmm..." Vin stared very intensely at Mako. She raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she asked. "Is something wrong?"

"Nah," he waved off, but Mason could tell that he almost pointed at her chest. "It's just that...That's quite a smooth surface right in front of you!"

"Huh?" Mako said, startled and doing a double take. "Heh?"

"Not an emotional girl, huh?" Vin remarked, studying her. "Nice hair, but not enough curves to impress me."

"Heh?" Mako repeated.

"Don't mind him," Mason said, but glared at them when he heard a whistle.

"Tallest girl I've ever seen," Vin said, looking up at Hana.

"She's over six feet," he noted. "Right, Mason?"

"Yes," he sighed. He hated being honest at this point.

"Nice to meet you!" Vin said out loud, giving her a handshake.

"Oh!" she reacted, startled by the friendly but sudden gesture. "My-my name Hana."

The boys laughed, as Hana shook Vin's hand.

"New girl, huh?" Vin said.

"Y-yes," she said. "N-nice to meet you."

"Nah," he said, waving his hand. "No need to be formal, but gotta say...You must have such lovely and _loving_ parents for a woman of your age!"

"Oh!" she responded, surprised. Mason rolled his eyes; he knew what was coming.

"A-arigatou!" she said. Vin blinked.

"Eh?" he asked.

"Thank you," Mason told Hana.

"Oh, right!" she responded. "So-sorry! Hana, thank you!"

"You like her because she's giant?" Mark moaned. "Come on! Look at her!"

"Me?" Saori asked.

"Oh..." the three boys stared at her. Mason deliberately stepped in front of her, blocking her view.

"A noble knight, eh?" remarked Anton.

"Keep her chest away, will ya?" Mason asked.

"But isn't she so BUSTY?!" Vin asked, and the others roared in laughter. "She's such a huge blond bombshell!"

"What?" Saori asked.

"A bombshell is a beautiful woman," said Mason, and the girls blushed. Saori's blush was the reddest of them all.

"Sweet..." she whispered, suddenly growing quiet. "Wait, our chests grew, too?"

"Anyway!" Mason yelled, catching both the girls and the boys off guard; he tried to NOT think about their chests. "We're here to eat! Chop chop! Waitress! One lechon feast, please!"

* * *

"Thank you!" Mason groaned, his stomach bulging. "Good thing to use that to distract us."

"What was it again?" Anton moaned, his face stuffed.

"Man," said Vin. "I am full!"

"You are?" Hana asked. All four boys stared at the girls.

Miho, Saori, and Yukari were already full, but the boys saw no signs of their stomachs bulging.

"Did you even eat?" asked Mason, then did a double take upon remembering that the girls were _not_ from his world.

"We did," Miho said, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"And you all used chopsticks well!" Vin said. "I am impressed."

"Impressed?" Hana asked. The boys all stared at her.

"How many plates was that?" asked Anton, jaws agape.

"Two plates are normal," Mark answered hesitantly. "But Hana..."

"Eight plates," Mason managed to blurt out, gawking. "Is that normal?"

"Isn't this normal for a person?" asked Hana, eating her ninth plate. "I am on a diet, you know."

All four boys did a huge double take. Mason stared up at the ceiling, his right hand over his forehead as if having a fever. Anton slammed his head to the ground, stunned. Mark made a motion as if about to throw up, but stopped himself. Vin collapsed on a sofa nearby.

"What?" Hana asked. Her other friends, however, stared at her portion size.

"You ate that much," said Saori. "And still feel normal."

"Is it not?" asked Hana. A waitress came by, who stared at Hana's plates.

"Excuse me..." she asked. "How are you so tall and slim?"

"Hmm?" asked Hana. "I guess a good diet and a healthy life would do."

"Ye...yeah..." the waitress responded, as she collected the plates, while staring at Hana.

"Well!" Vin said. "What are you all up to?"

"I guess we need to go home," Mason said.

"Wait!" Anton said, getting up. "Already?"

"Hey," said Mason, smirking and showing his time on his cell phone. "I need to get home, or else my mom would be worried sick."

"Mama's boy, huh?" said Vin.

"I love my mom," Mason replied. "I need to go, sorry! See ya!"

"What a weird teen," whispered Anton to his friends.

"He has his way," Vin said, shrugging, as he and others eyed the girls. "We'll try them next time."

* * *

"Whew!" Mason shook himself. "Glad to get out of that!"

He drove his sedan, as the girls chatted as usual. However, while most were talking, Mason secretly looked at his wallet. Miho, however, noticed that.

"Ah!" Miho said. "Thanks for the meal!"

"You're welcome," Mason said, although he wished he had more money.

"Here is my house," he told them, the house in front of them.

"A townhouse?" asked Saori.

"Yes," he replied. "At least better than a bad one. It's cheap rent and such. Mom and I live well enough."

"What about your father?" asked Miho.

"He's in Korea," he replied. " _South_ Korea, to be exact. Apparently, some recent fights there forced him to stay put. He's safe, but still..."

"Crazy stuff going there, huh?" asked Yukari, patting him on the right shoulder.

"Thanks," he said, smiling back. Yukari blushed.

"So," Saori began. "What are we-"

"YIKES!" Mason suddenly roared, revving up the engine and going out of the neighborhood. "I am late, late. Almost late!"

"You OK?" asked Miho.

"Need to take you girls home!" he told them. "No time to explain!"

Mason charged as fast as possible, trying to not stay over the speed limit.

"You must be desperate," remarked Saori, as the sedan almost sped too fast.

* * *

"Yes-yes-yes!" Mason replied, trying to find the road. "There it is!"

The girls felt that Mason was unintentionally driving faster than usual, as he drove back to the motel. As the sedan plowed through the weedy road again, Mason managed to calm down. Sighing in relief, he apologized to the girls.

"Sorry about that," he said. "Yes, I have some important business to deal with. That's why I have to bring you all back here."

"We're OK," said Miho, and the others agreed. "But what is it?"

"Alright!" he declared, looking at the timer (he did not hear Miho's question). "I better just drop you all off, and I am off!"

He pulled into the lot, the same lot that he remembered before.

"Hey," Miho began. "Didn't the motel chan-"

"Talk later!" Mason called out. "Sorry, but gotta go!"

The sedan flashed down the road, as Miho and the others stared down. Then, they looked up at the building.

"It changed again," Miho said. "It's now two stories tall."

"And it has a more Japanese-style roof," Saori noted.

"A more Japanese corridor and floor," Hana said.

"And look!" Yukari yelled. "The ninth room is now a garage!"

"And we have Internet and phone connections," Mako mumbled. The girls looked up; sure enough, they saw a strange communications disc that looked a little futuristic, but it was clearly something that allowed them to have wifi.

"Hooray!" Saori said. "Now, we can call Mason anytime!"

"Wait!" Miho said. "We're in the US, not Japan."

"Oh..." the girls realized.

"But we can try," said Miho, taking out her phone. She dialed the number, and waited for Mason."

 _Ring..._

 _Ring..._

 _Click!_

"I am going!" said Mason. "Call me later!"

 _Click._

Miho smiled, and the others nodded.

"Alright," Miho said. "Let's check out this building!"

"I wonder why it changed again," said Saori.

"A scientific impossibility," said Mako. "It is beyond science."

"Magic, perhaps?" asked Hana.

"Impossible," said Mako.

"I think it is," Miho said. The others stared at her.

"Well," said Yukari. "Whatever it is, magic or tank, let's go and panzer vor!"

Miho grinned.

"Alright," she said. "Girls, panzer vor!"

"Hai!" everybody chimed in.

* * *

"Whew!" he said, watching the timer. "I made it! Thank you God, for this great day!"

He pulled into his lot, just in time. His area normally reserved two spots for each house, but sometimes an occasional visitor would use his own space. No one was there, and best of all, his mom was not back yet.

He furiously slammed into his house, dressed in his pajamas, and readied himself for his mom's visit.

"Mom," he practiced his usual manners. "I am home at last!"

Mason fell on his bed, glad. Since he came back just in case, he did not need to explain to his mom why he was a little late. Being a little late made her mom suspicious, and he was not in the mood to explain how he drove around with five girls in his own car. He could imagine mom getting suspicious of whether he had a-"

"Nevermind!" he loudly said to himself. "I am just going to rest and wait!"

The doorbell rang.

"Coming!" he called out, jumping out of bed to open the door. "Welcome back, mo...oh."

A tall, robust man with tanned skin dressed in a black suit loomed over him. He was fixing his sunglasses, which were as black as his suit.

"Hello," he said. "May...I help you?"

"Sorry sir," the man in black said, his deep voice booming into the interior. "But have you felt something recently?"

"Eh?" he asked.

"Something out of the ordinary," he said. "Like being able to eat without getting fat and all?"

"No," he said.

"Thank you," the man replied. "Good day."

Mason closed the door, but felt cold shivers down his spine.

"Who was that guy?" he said to himself. "An odd question, unless he would ask my friends..."

He decided to peek through the window.

The man kept checking his cell phone, an old type that flipped. Looking around, he casually walked away, but Mason was suspicious. He decided to sneak out only when the man was out of his vision. Seeing him go into a rather dark alley, Mason went out, and eavesdropped on the man, while hiding behind a wooden fence.

"I see nothing here," said the man. Mason peeked over, and gasped. The man held out his wristwatch, which portrayed a 3D image of a man cloaked in purple and gold.

"A futuristic watch?" Mason said to himself. "Cool, the US is getting way ahead of itself."

"What do you mean?" growled the cloaked figure. The voice was static, but Mason felt a chill down his spine.

"There was only a half-Asian guy in his pajamas," the man retorted (Mason blushed, embarrassed). "Nobody else was home in this neighborhood, sir."

Mason could tell that the man in black was a little disgusted. He could sympathize; the man apparently was on a mission, but came at the wrong time.

"It's too quiet here," the man continued. "And you, Agent Father, sent me here, a place where there is no way we're finding that interference."

 _Interference?_ Mason wondered. _Agent Father? A cult or a secret organization? I heard of such in movies and TV shows, but in real life?_

"We need to find that interference," said the Agent Father from the watch, gesturing furiously. "When we find that, we can have power beyond your imagination. Even you want to save your wife, who is suffering from cancer, aren't you? Only that power can save your wife."

"Yes, your Father," the man replied. "I really want to save my wife."

"But only the Corporation can actually harness that power," said the cloaked figure. "You know that, Agent Tunis?"

 _The Corporation?_ Mason thought. _What a lame name. But it sounds strange..._

"But why only through your company?" asked Agent Tunis.

"Do not question that," said Agent Father, his voice getting low. "You've asked that one too many times."

"I am sorry, sir," Agent Tunis said. Mason noticed large sweats on the man's forehead.

"Agent Tunis," said the Agent Father. "Make sure you keep checking around. Our observatories indicate that somebody here may know about that place. Keep checking; keep finding out the truth."

"And who could it be, exactly?" asked the Agent Tunis.

"We are still figuring out," the Agent Father growled. "But we know that there is somebody in contact with 'aliens' from a different dimension. Once we harness that power, we can do infinitely more than we can imagine."

"And hail your Father!" the Agent Tunis said, saluting. Mason saw him almost do the Nazi salute, but the man corrected himself and just made a simple military gesture.

"Sorry about that," he said.

"Just go and find out," Agent Father said. "Keep finding. Check for any signs of hiding. You were a police officer once; you know how to spot a liar."

"Thank you," Agent Tunis said, saluting again. Mason gulped.

"Good luck, Agent Tunis," said Agent Father. "This is the true Force; we need every bit of it for the sake of the world order."

 _Click_. The hologram-like display disappeared, and Agent Tunis wiped his forehead hard. Mason slowly backed away, and tiptoed back to his home.

Mason then opened the door, but found it locked.

"Oops," he realized.

"I am home!" a voice called out.

"Mom!" he cried out, dashing out and hugging her, who parked her car right next to his. "How are you doing today?"

"Great!" she said, giggling. "And locked out with your pajamas, huh?"

He blushed.

"Yes..." he admitted.

"Oh, what a weird boy you are," she said, as she unlocked the door. "Come on, let's have dinner!"

"Yay!" he answered, and closed the door. Suddenly remembering, he looked through the window, the blinds shielding him from the outside world. Agent Tunis apparently did not see him; he was busy with something in his suit.

"Mason?" his mom asked.

"Sorry, mom!" he said, coming back. "I am fine! Just curious and thoughtful, you know!"

"Great!" she said, as she focused on her cooking. Mason sighed in relief; right now, his mom was too busy to notice that he looked a little cleaner than usual.

"Yikes," he said to himself, as he went up the stairs. "Am I starting to act like a boyfriend or something?"

He crashed into his bed, not to sleep but to think.

"The motel...the girls...the man in black...the Corporation..." he said to himself. "What is going on around here?"

"Maybe," he said to himself again, as he jumped out and prepared his backpack. "I can talk to one of my pastors at church. Unlike most, he is quite open-minded about this matter, hopefully."

But girls from a TV show in the real world? he thought. How crazy can it get?

* * *

"Miporin?" asked Saori.

"Huh?" asked Miho.

"Dinner is ready," she said. "It's odd that not only do we have extra space, but somebody somehow provided us with fresh food and a huge kitchen for use. I almost wonder if this motel is a genie in disguise..."

"I will come," Miho said. "Let me think about something."

"OK!" she said, as she walked back.

Miho looked up at the mountains and the stars. The mountains loomed ominously, its shadows shrouding the world around. The stars, however, radiated faint lights that somehow made the world a little brighter.

"The portal...that boy...America..." she said to herself. "What a crazy world. I hope we can go back home, though."

"Agreed," said Saori, and Miho turned around. All of her friends were there.

"We may not know how," said Saori, as she put down the pot of stew. They were on a picnic table, which they found nearby, and Miho was sitting on the chair to think about today.

"But," said Hana, as he elegantly laid down the utensils and napkins. "We can try."

"And keep going!" said Yukari, as she brought out her military containers, full of her own home-cooked food.

"A sweet moment," said Mako, as she brought out a cake.

"Mako!" Saori said. "Cake later!"

Miho giggled.

"Well, you all are right," said Miho. "We'll figure out what's going on."

"Grace!" Miho suddenly said, putting her hands in prayer.

"Grace?" asked the girls.

"Oh!" said Miho. "Sorry, itadakimasu!"

"He rubbed on you, heh?" Mako smirked. Miho blushed, but nodded.

"Well," Saori said. "Talk later; let's eat!"

The girls ate their fill, not really thinking about how they managed to get the food in the first place. They were too hungry to think about how the motel somehow provided them with the food in the first place.

"I wonder how or why?" Miho said to herself in a small whisper.

"Hmm," Mako overheard her.

"This motel somehow provides us with what we need," said Miho, as the others started to listen. "Or maybe, it was _us_ who brought the food."

"Huh?" asked Saori. "We didn't buy groceries, so how does that make sense?"

"I don't know," said Miho. "But it reminds me of Anzu and her team; they know how to do such mysterious things, bringing in food or using laws to save our school and all."

"And where are they?" asked Hana.

* * *

"WHAT JUST HAPPENED HERE?!" a girl with a monocle roared, aghast at the sight. Everywhere, things and even people stopped, as if frozen in time.

"Calm down," a petite girl with pigtails strolled calmly, munching on her dried sweet potatoes. "At least it's peaceful right now."

"Yes, it is peaceful," a nicely figured girl with a large ponytail said. "But what really happened?"

"Dunno," the petite girl said.

"You're too calm!" roared the monocle girl. "Prez! Act more reasonable, for once!"

"Calm down, Momo-chan," the ponytail girl said.

"Stop calling me that!" Momo groaned. "Yuzu!"

"Yuzu is right," the petite girl said. "I, the President Anzu Kadotani, will find a way to solve this."

"And how?" Momo asked. "Prez? Prez? President?"

Anzu suddenly stopped, fixing her gaze on something. She pointed at their tank garage. The two girls silently looked.

One of the garage's doors was open a little, but inside they saw a faint purple glow.

"Something's in there," said Anzu. "And I think I glimpsed Miho, or so I think."

"Well!" Momo said. "Why not!"

She stumped towards the garage, or sort of half-ran. Yuzu followed behind, while Anzu just walked casually, following them.

"Well," Anzu said. "This is going to be interesting."

* * *

 **It is going to be interesting, Anzu. Let's just say you three will go through there. Welcome to America, Turtle Team.**

 **Credit goes to gvinthedore for providing me important details on the Filipino culture, and for the Filipino OC's.**


	8. Chapter 8: Kappa Key

**Oho! What is going to happen next on this chapter...?**

 **By the way, thank you to everyone, who helped to make 17 reviews, 13 likes, and 20 follows on this story! Yay! Say, on a side note, is the "like" and "follow" similar or different?**

 **I am actually curious about that.**

 **Anyway, early spoiler alert: I originally wanted this chapter to be longer, but realized that the last sentence was a great ending for this. So, behold!**

 **Here they come, the...no, I won't spoil it, for now. Those who read Chapter 7 should suspect who should be coming in.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Kappa Key**

"Ohayo," Miho yawned, as she went out of the motel. It was Sunday morning, very early morning. At 5:30 AM, Miho came out in her full dress, the same type of dress Mason bought for her. Apparently, despite talks of finding some new clothing, the girls forgot to do so, but Miho did not mind.

She actually liked her new clothing.

Miho gazed at the morning sun, which was barely peeking through the horizon. She could barely see the eastern shore. Yawning again, she stretched and walked around. While strolling around, she noticed a mirror hanging on a wall above one of the tatami floors. Despite finding it odd, she looked at herself in it, twisting her body around to check herself.

She really did change. Being 178 cm or almost six feet tall sure made her feel a little too tall; she checked her legs, now lengthened. Her body was also more curvaceous; she blushed at her enlarged butts and especially her enlarged chest.

"Is Jessica Rabbit that large?" wondered Miho. "I wonder..."

She kept checking her body, turning around and around. She even gave a small smile, and blushed.

"Why am I looking?" she asked aloud, shaking her head. "Wait, I need to go and check out who that Rabbit woman is."

She went into the garage. The garage was the ninth room, the largest of them all. Despite being a garage, there was no vehicle of any kind in it. It did, however, have an entire set of tools and everything that a mechanic needs to fix a car, a tank, and even an airplane.

"I wonder why we have tools to fix a plane," Miho wondered. "Oh well, let me use the laptop."

The garage somehow had two laptops, one computer set, and a touchscreen tablet on the wall; Miho wondered who even put there in the first place, although she remembered that she wanted a laptop to use. She sat on a table with the laptops, and opened the smaller one. The smaller laptop was white with a picture that looked like a teddy bear drawn in black marker in the middle.

"Let's see..." she said, surfing the Internet in Japanese. She typed "Jessica Rabbit" in English, surprised that she was able to type so well so fast.

"Jessica Rabbit," she read. "A character with a...oh."

Her search engine revealed pictures of a cartoon woman in red dress, and she came from a movie in which her husband was a talking rabbit.

"I..." she muttered. "I do sort of look like her, but not with a rabbit. Less curvy, but still...yeah."

She closed the laptop, and went out. The fresh morning air filled her lungs, rendering her refreshed and calm.

Suddenly, she heard a strange cry.

"What was that?" she wondered. Miho walked towards the noise, which came from a corner of the motel. Cautiously, she craned her head to look. She saw a masked, tanuki-like animal trying to bite into a turtle. The turtle was inside its shell, but the predator was furiously trying to scratch it.

"A raccoon," she noted. "An American animal, and poor turtle..."

She approached the animal. The raccoon bared its teeth at her, but stopped upon seeing her. She glared at the mammal, her normally sweet eyes now silently indignant. The raccoon and the girl stared at each other for a while. The raccoon slowly backed away, before disappearing into the bushes.

Miho sighed, and knelt down to check the animal. The turtle remained hidden in its shell, but poked its head a little out. The two stared at each other for a while, then Miho slowly backed away, and rushed to her room kitchen. Frantically, she searched for a basket of wild blueberries that she and others gathered during their free time. Finding a particularly large one, she went out and returned to the corner.

The turtle was slowly walking away, but froze upon seeing the tall figure.

"Here," she said sweetly, leaving the berry on the ground. The turtle stared at her, then slowly, but very slowly walked towards the berry. It reached out its neck, but retracted. Miho smiled, waiting.

The turtle peeked out, and reached out again. This time, it took the berry in its mouth, and swallowed it. The turtle then stared up at her.

"Miporin!" Saori cried out, yawning. The two turned around. A figure with a messy mass of orangish hair stretched in the distance, their room door open wide.

"Saori!" she called out. "I am coming!"

"See you," she whispered to the turtle, turning around.

The turtle watched her jog towards the building. It stared until she was gone. Then, it slowly moved into a nearby bush, and dug around.

* * *

"Sorry for the small breakfast," Saori said. "But at least we had leftovers from yesterday's dinner."

"And some wild food!" Yukari declared. At a table in their room, they had leftovers from the yesterday's lechon feast. Apparently, the lechon was a little too much for everyone, except Hana, who devoured her whole portion. Hence, Mason bought another meal, just to hope that she would not ask for a second portion. Yukari proudly featured the dishes made from some wild food she harvested.

"Ramps!" she declared. "These wild relatives of garlic should be great!"

"But so strong!" Saori coughed. "I did not expect them to be strong, but they taste great!"

"I never knew," said Miho, eating her portion. "That dandelions have edible leaves."

"And this is not enough," remarked Hana. Everybody stared at her portion, which was twice the amount of the others'.

"We..." said Miho. "We'll ask Mason-senpai if we can get more...What?"

Everybody stared at Miho.

"You called him senpai," said Saori, grinning. "You like him, don't you?"

"Well..." Miho said. "I...I do."

Everybody stared, then flipped out.

"Honest!" Saori declared. "I expected you to deny it, but you admitted!"

"Amazing," said Hana. "You are as honest as you are nice."

"Nishizumi-dono!" Yukari yelled, jaws agape. "You're in love?!"

"Strange," said Mako. "We've seen some boys back in our world, but you never expressed any interest in them. Not even a single American or so who visited our school ships."

"Well," said Miho. "There was something about him that attracted me."

"What is it?" asked Saori, grinning very wide. She leaned towards Miho, trying to listen more closely.

"I-I don't know," she admitted. "I actually felt _something_ from him."

"The energy of 'niceness'?" Mako asked, almost sarcastically. "To be honest, he had this 'feeling' that made me feel a little less tired, and more excited."

"He makes you feel more excited, eh?" Saori asked, somewhat wrestling her. "So, you like _him_ , too?"

"I do not," she said flatly, but Miho noticed a twinkle in her eyes.

"Say," Miho said. "What are we going to do?"

"Oh, I know," Mako said, nonchalantly. "I found something interesting. Miho, I think you will need to hear it."

"Something important?" asked Saori, as Mako led the group to the garage.

"I was just toying around with the electronics here," said Mako. "It appears that the motel is...magical?"

"It sure does!" said Saori. "I don't know how or why, but at least this makes us feel home for now."

"Back to the point," said Hana. "What do you want to show us, Mako?"

Mako went straight for a strange bump in a wall parallel to the garage door.

"See this?" Mako said, pointing at it.

"Yes?" asked the group.

Mako pushed it, and a rattling sound echoed in the garage. Then, it stopped.

Suddenly, a tablet appeared from the bump, one that the group had never seen before.

"A tablet?" asked Saori.

"No," said Mako. "A spy module."

"Spy module?" asked her team.

"Check this out," she said, smirking. She clicked a button, a recording from yesterday.

The girls craned in to look. The module was static for a while.

"How did you find this?" asked Miho.

"Just checking around," answered Mako. "When I bumped into this, and I found this."

"And?" asked Saori.

"Well," said Mako. "For some reason, it says about 'NEED MORE ENERGY.' However, it was fully charged, and I brought you all in to see what to do."

"Hey," said Miho, squinting at the screen. The tablet's words suddenly appeared, this time saying: ENERGY MET."

"Now it says that?" Mako said, clearly grunting. "So, I guess we all have to be here for it to activate?"

"Then," began Saori. "What is this-"

"Who the ***** are you talking about?" yelled a huge voice. The girls, except Mako, jumped back. Mako just blinked, apparently surprised.

"What do you mean," it boomed. "Still nothing there?"

"Agent Father," another voice echoed, which sounded annoyed. "I have been here 24 hours, without a single hour of sleep today, and I find...nothing."

"Our observatories," growled the deeper voice that the girls identified as the Agent Father. "Clearly indicate that we find some kind of 'interference' in that area there."

"But sir," the annoyed voice continued. "This is no science; it's magic!"

"Magic or science," Agent Father boomed. "You are expected to find it! Our latest analyses indicate that the latest expression of the 'interference' seems to be a cluster of some people. This group of people seem to be led by a figure who is not a part of the interference. Apparently, whoever they are, they are from that world."

"I do not believe a single **** bit of that story," said the annoyed voice.

"Be quiet!" Agent Father roared. "You don't need to believe that story, just the part that it can heal your wife of cancer, who is in the hospital. Have you forgotten that, Agent Tunis?"

"I forgot about that," admitted Agent Tunis. "I-I am sorry."

"Good!" Agent Father grunted. "Fortunately, I-huh? Oh, Agent Viper, what do you have? Ah...Agent Tunis, I have new reports. Let me see..."

The girls could hear stacks of paper being looked through.

"Aha!" Agent Father roared. "Agent Tunis, we have a potential lead! One of our spies reports a unique presence of that 'interference' back at Mini Manila! Go to this restaurant, Mango Bar, and interrogate the people there. We'll send backup as well."

The girls looked at each other.

"Finally!" Agent Tunis groaned. "We finally have somewhere to go."

"And I need you to know," said Agent Father. "One more thing."

"Yes?" Agent Tunis asked. The girls craned in, both curious and tense at the same time.

"You will need to find a way," said Agent Father. "To stay one step ahead of these people. Whoever they are, if they find out about us, they can use their 'interference' to get ahead of us."

The girls looked at each other again, now confused. Miho, however, sensed something inside of herself.

"What if they do?" asked Agent Tunis.

"The only way," said Agent Father. "For the 'interference' to remain out of our reach is that the 'interference' be stronger than our own system. Or that they somehow use it to block us out. Fortunately, we managed to gain a little of this 'interference.'"

The girls looked at each other, sweating.

"Hey..." whispered Saori. "What are they saying?"

"I-" began Miho, but stopped to hear more of the mysterious talk.

"And where do we get that bit of 'interference' from?" asked Agent Tunis. "From that world?"

"World?" asked Hana, but Saori hushed her to be quiet.

"Are you moving to Mini Manila?" asked Agent Father.

"Yes, I am driving there as we speak," answered Agent Tunis.

"Good!" said Agent Father. "Oh yeah, by the way, we get the 'interference' from some of our special machines, which managed to extract bits of that 'interference' from that world."

The girls stared at each other, then turned to listen.

"But even bits are amazing," Agent Father said. "With those bits, we were able to cure cancer and incurable illnesses. However, once we do so, we use the bits of 'interference' off. Apparently, we just found out that any 'alien' who came from that world holds a renewable source of the 'interference.' Once we capture them, we can harness that energy for our own sake."

"Matrix?" asked Yukari. "It sure sounds like Matrix."

"It sure sounds like that good movie," said Agent Tunis. "Where humans are used as sources of energy."

Yukari almost did a double take.

"Except," said Agent Father, his voice starting to crack as if laughing. "That anyone from that dimension is not really 'human.' Hence, we can use that to get what we want."

The girls stared at each other.

"Sounds cruel and sinister," said Agent Tunis, chuckling. "Oh, I am at Mini Manila, and your forces are here."

"Very good!" Agent Father said. "Now, interrogate them, and find the 'aliens' who may have been there. Good luck, Agent Tunis."

"And hail your Father!" saluted Agent Tunis.

 _Click._

* * *

The girls stared in silence. They did not remember how long they were staring. Apparently, all of them were thinking about what they heard. Miho went full commander mode.

 _Must be an organization out to kidnap us_ , thought Miho. _We better let Mason-senpai to stay away from Mini Manila, and we'll have to avoid it as well. We better keep this in mind. Poor Filipinos..._

"Interesting, heh?" Mako finally said something.

"Poor people," said Miho. "Anton, Mark, and Vin...I wonder..."

"So we're aliens?" blurted out Saori, aghast. "How are we aliens?"

"Technically, we are," said Mako. "We're _illegal_ aliens."

"And aliens from another world," said Hana. "But I am confused by them talking about this thing called 'interference.' What do they mean by that?"

"I have a feeling," said Miho. "That Mason may have the key to that."

"Eh?" the other girls asked.

"Mason..." Miho said. "Where are you?"

* * *

"Finally!" Mason groaned.

He laid back on his chair, sighing in relief. The laptop in front of him had a pop-up screen, stating: "YOUR APPLICATION HAS BEEN ACCEPTED."

"Finally," Mason blurted out. "I have applied for a new job, and it looks like I can make it."

"Mason!" his mother called out from downstairs. "Are you coming down?"

"Coming, mom!" he answered back. "I am dressed and ready to go! Oh, let me shut down my laptop!"

"Guess you're ready for church?" his mom asked, giggling as her boy flew down the stairs. "Few boys your age are like you, these days."

"Mom!" groaned Mason. "There are plenty of boys who like being Christians, but who are bored with church."

"So, how do you make churches _not_ boring?" asked his mom.

"Partly," he replied. "It would be churches not focused on what they want to hear, and partly due to their own fault."

"And you like church," his mom said. "Because the pastor keeps us entertained, and because you find church a great place to rest."

"Yup!" he replied. "And something to think about, as well."

"Huh?" his mom asked.

"Oh, sorry!" he said, waving furiously. "OK, are we ready to go?"

"You drive," she said. "I am a little tired from driving.

"OK," he sighed. "At least it's just a short distance."

* * *

"What?" Mason responded, aghast.

"We're sorry," said his pastor, shrugging. "But we have to find another spot for service."

Mason stared up at their church building. It was a plain, white building, converted from an old computer building of sort. Now, it had a clean, glass gate that decorated the front. However, a small whiff of black smoke rose ominously out of an opened hatch on top of the glass gate.

"Another bad day for our poor church," chuckled his pastor. "Apparently, somebody forgot again to check the kitchen stove, and burned it. Although the fire is gone, the smoke rendered our church temporarily closed, as we have too much smoke in there."

"But!" groaned Mason. "What about our service?"

"I like your behavior," said his pastor. "For most boys, it would be 'Yeah! Now, more time to play games!' But you are uncommon in your reaction."

"Well," Mason admitted. "I came for church; I intend to do so."

"Well said," said his pastor. "What do _you_ think?"

"What do _I_ think?" asked Mason, rolling his eyes. "Pastor AK, stop feigning ignorance! You found it funny, and did it one too many times now!"

"But you are so responsive!" said Pastor AK. "Now, chop chop!"

He clapped his hands, getting the attention of the remaining people who stayed behind.

"My fellow brothers and sisters," he declared. "And sweet boy Mason."

"Hey!" Mason shouted, getting some laughs from the audience.

"So," Pastor AK said. "Where should we go?"

"Any ideas?" asked one of the congregants.

"Nope," Pastor AK admitted, causing Mason to make a facepalm. "But it looks like Mason has something to say."

"Me?" asked Mason, and blushed when others watched him. "Me for ideas of where to go?"

"Somewhere nice and religious," said Pastor AK. "What is your favorite place?"

"Mountains," he curtly said, then blushed when he realized he said it too fast.

"OK!" Pastor AK declared. "If any of us is willing, deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow us to the mountains!"

Some of the congregants cried out in joy; the mountains sure were peaceful.

"Oh boy," said Mason. "To the mountains, huh? The same place?"

"The same place," Pastor AK said, grinning. "Your favorite place."

"Not the first time, huh?" asked his mom. "You can go with Pastor AK. One of my friends already invited me to another church, and she'll give me a ride home. You have your car; go and have it!"

"Mom," groaned Mason. "You trust me too much, don't you?"

"Trust your mom!" declared Pastor AK, slapping him hard. "And trust in God."

"Deal," Mason said without thinking.

"Deal," he answered back.

* * *

"Here we are," said Mason, leading the remnant of the congregation up into the mountains. The seemingly lonely mountains stood far away from the Appalachians; nobody really knew how or why the mountains were there in the first place. However, it was a favorite spot for a variety of people.

"The same old," he sighed. He drove his sedan up the mountain roads, as a line of cars followed him like ducklings. He and his people passed by what the locals called the "Religious Loop," because of the number of famous places of worship. He counted and recalled them as he passed them.

"And one Shinto shrine," he mumbled. "Wait, why does that sound fam-wow!"

He swerved, almost smashing into a stone wall nearby. The pastor behind him honked, letting me know to focus.

"Sorry!" Mason replied, waving. "OK...Focus."

He then noticed one particular driveway, and signaled to enter left. The whole line went through, and they arrived.

"Welcome to Freedom Park," he read the wooden sign. "It is; one of the few parks that one can use without official permission."

He parked his car, and went out to stretch.

"Are you ready?" the pastor asked.

"Yup," Mason answered. "Let's get going."

"Say," Pastor AK said, as he went along. "By the way, why did you swerve when you saw the Shinto shrine?"

"Huh?" he asked.

"You apparently thought of something," Pastor AK inferred. "What was it?"

"I guess it's the girls," he replied. "They're amazing."

"Eh?" Pastor AK asked. "Who?"

* * *

"Atchoo!" all five girls sneezed.

"Eek," Saori said. "Was Mason talking about us?"

"We forgot to tell him," said Hana, wiping her nose with her fancy handkerchief. "That in Japan, we have a superstition that if you talk about someone behind his or her back, that person sneezes."

"Well," Mako said, sniffing. "Apparently, it was something good, because we sneezed only once."

"If it was twice," said Saori. "He would have been gossiping."

"Or," said Yukari. "Actually talking about us."

"I don't think he's the type to betray us," said Miho. "He's cute."

Everybody stared at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You're into him again, huh?" asked Saori, grinning.

Miho blushed, but nodded.

"Say," Hana began. "What did...hey, is that a turtle?"

Miho turned around fast, and gasped. It was the same turtle that she saved. The others looked at it, curious.

"Hey there!" Miho cried out, walking towards it. The turtle hesitated, then walked towards her.

" _Terrapene carolina carolina_ ," said Mako.

Everybody blinked at her, while Miho stared at the turtle, noticing something in its mouth.

"Sorry?" asked Hana.

"An Eastern box turtle," explained Mako. "It's an endangered species of box turtle, native to North America. This one is a subspecies of that species. Huh, it has something in its mouth."

Miho showed her right hand, and the turtle dropped it into her hand.

"A key," Miho said. "One with a strange swirl at the end. Hmm, where did I see that?"

"A turtle?" asked Saori. "I thought turtles live in waters."

"Box turtles like to live on land a lot," said Mako. "But they are turtles, despite that. And Miho, did you befriend it?"

"Yes, I did!" she answered, blushing. "Now, I want to befriend a bear."

Everybody stepped away, except Hana.

"Bear," she said. "I wonder if it tastes good..."

This time, everybody stepped away from Hana. Even the turtle retracted its head into its shell.

"By the way," Miho said, quickly changing the subject. "What is this key?"

The turtle said nothing, but nodded and walked away.

"Not answering?" asked Saori, pouting.

Miho shrugged, and smiled.

"I guess it's saying thanks," she said, inspecting the key. "Hmm, this swirl at the end looks familiar..."

"From a logo?" asked Saori.

"Yes!" Miho replied, now starting to recognize it. "But why is it-wow!"

Suddenly, the key jerked and flew from her like a dart. It struck at thin air, as if there was an invisible door with a lock. It then turned around.

"Hey," Mako said. "Isn't that the same spot where we ended up here in the first place?"

"You're right!" Hana said. "I marked that spot with a flower I found nearby."

The key slowly turned, while the single flower below, a red chrysanthemum, fluttered. Then, it bowed back, away from the girls. The key merged into thin air, and a familiar reddish-purple portal opened up, and it opened all the way down to the ground, so that the flower was safe from harm.

"What is going to happen?" asked Saori, shivering. "It felt good to-wait, can we go back home?"

The girls watched, tense.

"I am not sure," Miho said. "Remember our portal? When we went out, it was gone. I don't...wait."

They saw three figures standing in front of the portal, blurred by it. Yet they looked familiar.

"I don't believe it!" Miho cried.

"You can't be serious!" Saori said, almost crying in relief.

"My my," said Hana, smiling.

"Yay!" Yukari jumped.

"Oh boy," said Mako. "Another team."

Miho approached the portal, reaching out her hand. The middle figure, the smallest of them with pigtails, gave her a thumbs-up, and reached out with her right hand. It grabbed Miho's right stretched hand, and Miho pulled her out.

"Welcome here," said Miho. "President."

* * *

 **OK, for anyone who is excited, please wait, as I need to rest before I can actually write another chapter again.**

 **In the meantime, please review for points good and bad, so that I can revise and improve. However, if you want a longer, more detailed talk, please PM me.**

 **I appreciate every clear criticism, and thank you for supporting me.**


	9. Chapter 9: Landing the Turtle

**OK, the Turtle has landed.**

 **Enough said.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Landing the Turtle**

"This is our new home," said Miho. "For now."

All five girls of the Anglerfish Team stared at the spectacle before them. Now, they were not alone. Finally, they were not alone.

Three girls stood before them, the Student Council back in their world. Three girls stood proudly, emitting an aura of authority despite not being in their world.

The smallest of them smiled.

"Nishizumi Miho," she said loud and clear. "I was wondering what happened back in our world."

"I don't know what happened there either," Miho admitted. The others nodded in agreement.

"Well-well," the relatively petite girl said. "So, anyway, apparently that sudden change in our world affected us, too."

"Yes," said Miho. "We just realized that, President oh, Anzu-chan."

She waved off.

"Miho," she said seriously, but smiling. "Just call me Anzu, no honorifics attached. I can tell by the air that we're not in Japan anymore."

"Quite smart are you?" asked Mako.

"Yup," said Anzu.

"Prez!" roared the tall girl with a monocle. "It's only because we saw a couple of images on that strange tunnel."

"Wait," said Miho. "You-you saw pictures on that tunnel?"

"You did not?" retorted the monocled girl.

"I guess the tunnel was different for everyone," said the sweet-faced girl with ponytail. "I mean, we saw them on one of the pictures, and their reaction implies that they did not see the same things."

"I guess you're right," Anzu said. "Momo, Yuzu. I guess we're in the US, eh?"

"So be it, whatever!" grunted Momo, wiping her monocle. "And why do I feel a little tight here?"

"That's the whole point," said Anzu, stretching. Her uniform, now too small for her, stretched out to expose her midriff.

"Prez!" Momo blurted out. "Watch your manners!"

"We're in America, not Japan," said Anzu. "Just relax, will ya?"

"So," the President continued, while Momo herself tried to hide her midriff. "This is our new home, huh?"

"Prez!" the girl with the monocle said. "Why are you so laid-back? This is no time to relax, for crying out loud!"

"You must be getting in, aren't you?" giggled a girl with ponytail. "Momo-chan?"

"Stop calling me Momo-chan!" roared Momo, fixing her eyeglass. "Yuzu, you know we're in a different world! It's obvious that we're in America, because we saw a flag of it while walking through that tunnel!"

"She's right," said Anzu, searching in her now-empty snack bag for the last bits of her favorite dried sweet potatoes. "But let Miho do the talking."

"Oh, yes!" Miho said, clearing her throat. "Pre-I mean, Anzu. Welcome to America."

"As we already know," Anzu said, grinning. "Say, what is this building?"

"It's a motel," replied Miho.

"A strange one," Momo mumbled, fixing her glass. "It looks both familiar _and_ odd."

"A mixture of American and Japanese designs," noted Yuzu.

"You are correct," said Hana. "It looks like our ikebana session did work out, after all."

Yuzu and Hana both giggled, while Momo rolled her eyes. She also attended that same session, but could not handle the "elegance" part of it.

"Anyway!" Momo roared, getting the attention of the girls around her. "What exactly _is_ going on here?"

Everybody looked at each other.

"Well," began Miho. "I-"

 _Click!_

A very loud sound echoed not far away from the girls. It came from the farthest left end of the motel.

"Oh!" Miho said, turning around. "Your room is ready."

"Eh?" the Turtle Team asked.

"Come follow us," said Miho, as she and her team walked towards the source of the noise.

The three girls of the Turtle Team looked at each other. Anzu just shrugged and followed them, with Momo and Yuzu trailing behind.

* * *

"Here is your room," said Miho, sliding the door open.

"Ah!" Anzu said, pleased with the interior.

The room looked remarkably like their office, but cleaner with desks and chairs organized properly. Except for the windows, the shelves covered almost all of the walls.

"It's a Student Council room," Yukari remarked, whistling. "Just like the one back in our world."

"But with beds and refrigerators!" Anzu said, coming in quick and slamming into a reclining chair. She sighed in relief.

"Prez!" moaned Momo, coming in but more cautiously. "Why are you so laid-back, especially now?"

"You're too nervous, aren't you?" asked Yuzu, giggling. "Momo-chan?"

"Stop calling me that!" Momo wailed. "And what happened here?"

"Well," Miho said, turning to the others. "I think we'll come into your room, and explain..."

* * *

"And that's how everything transpired," finished Miho.

Miho and her four teammates sat in the circle of sofas and chairs, similar to the one back in their world, where they formerly met to discuss battle plans. However, this one was bigger, allowing all eight girls to sit together. The three girls of the Turtle Team, however, sat together in a three-person sofa, which had scaled patterns remarkably like the shell of a turtle.

The Turtle Team stared at the revelation. Anzu whistled in amazement.

"Ridiculous!" roared Momo. "I can't believe it! First, we stressed out to save our school. Then, we did that TWICE! And now, this!"

"I don't know what happened," said Yuzu. "But it appears that this building is key to our connection with our world."

"And that boy Mason," Momo loudly grunted. "Is the only one who knows of our existence. He tells us that he knows about us, eh?"

"Yes," Miho answered.

"How does he even know us?" asked Momo.

"Oh!" all five girls of the Anglerfish Team gasped. They forgot to _ask_ Mason that question.

"Calm down," said Anzu. "They're still adjusting to this new world; we can ask that boy later."

"Sheesh, you're awfully calm," Momo grunted.

"Sheesh, you're awfully fun," Anzu teased Momo, her hands on her back casually. "Guess we're staying here for a while, eh?"

"But what are we going to do?" Momo groaned. "We don't even know America, other than the Saunders, and now this!"

"And other than this building," said Anzu. "I am out of ideas on how to get back."

"We don't even know where to start either," Yuzu chimed in.

"And just eight of us," Mako remarked nonchalantly.

"And just Mason," Yukari chimed in.

"And just this building," Hana sighed.

"And just no way out!" groaned Saori.

"And..." Miho hesitated. "No...tanks."

Silence.

"We...we do not even have a tank!" Momo roared in realization.

Everybody realized that now, and sighed unanimously.

"Tanks," Yukari admitted in resignation. "Were a part of my life. And now..."

"If only we have it back," mumbled Anzu, glancing away.

"Yeah," Miho said. "I wish our tank was here."

 _Boom!_

Everybody jumped, and turned to face the garage.

"What was that?" Momo screamed, hiding behind Yuzu.

"You're so cute," Yuzu said. "Momo-chan."

"Stop calling me that!" Momo shook.

"Hey-hey," said Anzu. "That's the garage, right?"

"Yes," Miho answered. "It's empty except for our electronics, such as laptops and a spy module. But we have no car in there..."

"Unless..." Yukari realized what Miho was thinking, shaking with joy.

"Could it be..." Miho wondered.

"I guess the motel is quite mysterious after all," said Mako.

They went out and approached the garage. Miho then reached out and pushed a red button.

The gate moaned, as it slowly rose up into the ceiling.

Everybody gasped.

"I am..." Miho did not finish her sentence; it was a dream come true.

* * *

"And a miracle can happen anytime," Pastor AK preached. "Of course, the Bible is full of them. But skeptics will call them 'magic' or even 'superstition.'"

Mason Paine wrote down in his note, trying to not yawn. Apparently, his pastor was not used to preaching outdoors, but everybody was willing to wait. Birds chirped in the air, while the winds blew through the woods. It was tranquil, except for the pastor's sermon and the occasional yawns and coughs. Pastor AK kept preaching for 20 more minutes, and Mason realized that he was almost out of space in his notepaper.

"And say," said Pastor AK. "Speaking of miracles, why not enjoy the fresh air?"

The others silently agreed; the whole congregation was excited for that.

"'You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples,' thus says the Lord from Psalms 77:14," declared Pastor AK in a deep, booming voice. His echo rang throughout the forest; even the birds on the trees and the insects on the ground quieted down to listen.

"And..." Pastor AK trailed off. "I...I forgot what I was going to say next."

Everybody laughed. Mason chuckled. Of course, it was a long time since anyone even held a sermon in the middle of the wilderness.

"Let us pray," said the pastor, and everybody bowed down, although some still chuckled.

"Lord Jesus," he declared. "Thank you for the smallest blessings of life."

"Amen," Mason mumbled, remembering his mom.

"Lord Jesus," he continued. "Thank you for the Freedom Park, and let freedom ring."

"Amen," Mason replied. His pastor sure loved to quote from Martin Luther King Jr.

"Lord Jesus," Pastor AK continued. "Thank you that Mason now is having girlfriends."

"Am-wait, WHAT?!" Mason yelled, jumping out of his seat.

The whole congregation roared in laughter.

"Hey!" Mason blurted out. "Was that a joke?!"

"Sort of," Pastor AK snickered. "One of my friends, with a gift of prophecy, dreamed that you were going out with girlfriends."

"And you said that in front of everybody?!" Mason moaned.

"Well," said Pastor AK. "You wanted to be popular, so I gave you one."

"Oh boy..." Mason said in a facepalm.

"Well then," said Pastor AK, clearing his throat. "And let us enjoy your great outdoors. Amen!"

"Amen!" everybody except Mason answered.

"Amen," Mason answered after a pause, and stood up to cool his head.

 _Arrghh!_ he silently roared.

* * *

"I can't believe you did that," groaned Mason, munching on a sandwich provided by the church.

The whole congregation now turned into a mass of laughter and ranting, as the members spread out into their own groups, talking about topics that each group was interested in. Mason noticed it again and again:

Most of the white Americans were in their group to talk about the latest news of the KKK, which apparently became prominent in Acta. The African-Americans spoke about a recent shootout, where it was alleged that a white cop shot an African-American down. The Filipinos chattered about something in Filipino; the Chinese, the Japanese, the Thais, and the Vietnamese were doing the same. Mason realized that his group was the most diverse: himself, Pastor AK, and the only pure-blood Korean in the entire church: Kim Jung-sik.

"I am not from North Korea," the boy blurted out. "Although my name is a little too similar..."

Everybody in the group laughed, even himself.

"Man," Mason moaned, wiping his tears. "You really like to make yourself funny, don't you?"

"Isn't that true?" asked Jung-sik. "I am from South Korea, not North. I find it odd that here in the US, many Koreans say they're from Korea, which 99% of the time refers to South Korea. North Korea is often referred to with North attached, as if it's not Korea."

"It is Korea," said Mason. "It's just...yeah, one of the worst places to live in the world."

"And the worst for Christians," said Pastor AK. "Unless you are wholeheartedly loyal to a dictator."

"Who has no heart for even his own people," Mason declared. "More hypocritical than our government, if you know what I mean."

"Yes, politics..." mumbled Pastor AK. "Even I admit that the taxes are a little...overwhelming."

"What is your honest opinion about the taxes?" asked Jung-sik.

"They take out about 20% of my paycheck!" groaned Mason. "After working so hard, they almost _steal_ 20% of your work hours! Why even work hard, when 20% of your efforts go to waste? And..."

Mason went on his long, honest rant about what he really felt about everything: politics, economy, and America in general. He did not realize how long he talked; his two listeners also contributed, and it became one long talk about random topics. The crowd thinned out, and only a few members remained.

"...and I guess," he sighed. "I am just so stressed out with everything."

"You are," said Pastor AK. "And what do you really want to say?"

"Huh?" asked Mason.

"A couple of times," said Pastor AK. "I noticed that you were about to say something, only to stop and talk about something. What is another thing you have in mind, heh? Girlfriends?"

He blushed.

"W-why?" he stammered.

"You seem to like someone, huh?" Jung-sik sighed. "Boy, I am jealous."

"Hey-hey!" Mason began. "I was not saying I like-"

"Someone, eh?" a voice growled in the distance.

The three turned around, and Mason gasped.

"Hey!" Mason called out, walking towards them. "What are you doing here?"

* * *

An hour ago...

"Finally!" Yukari yelled, as if seeing a celebrity. She caressed their very own vehicle that they could now drive in.

"Panzer IV Ausf. H!" she continued, as Miho and the others touched their own tank, both relieved and surprised that they finally could touch one.

"Another surprise," said Miho. "I wonder what this building is all about."

"Portal Motel," remarked Saori. "I think the name is more meaningful than it sounds."

"And now," Anzu said at last. "A garage that summons our tank."

"But what about ours?" asked Momo.

The others looked at each other, and shrugged.

"I think," Miho said. "I-"

"Let's test it!" Anzu said, strolling out. "We'll close the garage, wish for our tank, and see!"

The others nodded in agreement. They all went out, and closed the garage; the tank remained inside.

"OK!" Anzu said, smiling. "Open sesame!"

"Prez!" Momo groaned. "Stop acting like a child!"

Miho giggled, making Momo blush.

"You really do care, don't you?" asked Miho.

"Ye-yeah," Momo said. "I guess you just make me feel good."

She smiled.

"What?" Momo asked, look at her friends' stares.

"You smiled," said Yuzu.

"I-I did not!" Momo denied it.

"Well then," said Anzu. "Can you all help me to open the garage?"

They all opened, and Anzu smiled at the spectacle.

"Our own Hetzer!" Anzu declared, as her team touched the modified tank, which was more of an assault gun or a tank destroyer.

"Now," said Yukari excitedly. "We can move around without Mason's car!"

"Hold on," said Miho seriously. "We can, but it's illegal in America. Remember? This is America, not Japan. And this world's Japan has no Senshadou either..."

"And we're from another world apparently," said Mako. "So, Japan in this world is not our home either."

Silence.

"And," Miho continued. "Mason clearly told us that tanks here are only used in the military; they will get suspicious if a civilian is using these tanks."

"At least we'll drive through the forest," said Mako nonchalantly, as she went over to a corner to check the spy module. She was quite adept at it, and spent quite a while dealing with the complex device.

"But aren't they loud?" asked Yuzu.

"Tanks normally are," said Miho. "But I heard him say something about 'tanks in fiction being quieter than those in real life' or something."

"Hmm," said Anzu, imaginatively eating dried sweet potatoes; they were already gone from her now-empty bag. "Let's try that."

"Hey," Mako said, manipulating with the spy module. "Come here; I think we have a lead."

The others came to Mako. She was pushing something on the tablet rapidly, as if trying to find the right buttons. Miho noticed her face in a frown, which she realized was rare.

"Mako?" Miho began. "What are you doing?"

"Let me concentrate," Mako kept frowning. Her voice also sounded a little irritated, surprising both Miho and Saori.

"She rarely gets confused by a device," said Saori. "Now that I think about it, she even outsmarted a college professor in something called 'calculus,' and we did not even know what that type of math was yet! However, she admitted that that type of math was 'one confusing concept.'"

"If a smart girl says that," said Anzu, raising an eyebrow. "Then this spy module that you all talk about it is quite advanced, eh?"

"Would you all let me focus?" Mako growled. Both Anzu and Miho were taken aback by Mako's strange response.

"Hmm..." Mako continued, as the others watched her in silence. She pushed some buttons, stopped, then pushed some more buttons again.

Finally, her frown turned into a wide grin. She nodded at Miho and the others mischievously.

"Looks like he's here," she began, causing Miho to crane in and look at the screen.

"Mason-senpai?" she asked. Saori chuckled; she was starting to like this.

"What?" Miho asked, looking at her friends, especially the Turtle Team.

"You like Mason?" Anzu asked, as she and her teammates craned in to look. "First time you call a boy 'senpai,' eh?"

Miho blushed, but decided to focus on the module.

Mako apparently hijacked a cell phone, so they were looking through the camera lens. Apparently, the user was talking on the phone in a low whisper, so that they only saw the right side of the audience. However, the Anglerfish girls gasped when they recognized him.

"That's Mason?" Momo glared. "I sure hope he's a good guy."

"He looks nice," said Anzu. "Right, Yuzu?"

Yuzu blinked.

"Oh, yes!" she finally responded. Saori looked at her, curious.

"Where is he?" asked Miho, still glued to the screen.

"Freedom Park, it says," said Mako, noticing a sign in the screen. "Wait, the module says that the park is three miles away."

"Freedom Park," Miho said, her eyes sparkling. Saori noticed them, and giggled silently.

 _She's definitely in love_ , thought Saori. _Well, if I cannot get a boyfriend, at least I can help others like her to get one! Maybe I will get one too, someday_.

"Well then!' Saori said in a loud voice. "Why not go there?"

"There?" Miho asked, incredulous.

"We do have a tank," said Anzu. "But we have to travel off-road, in order to minimize detection."

"Good point," said Yukari. "Plus, the nearest road is mostly empty, so we have a chance at crossing over if necessary."

"Which tank should we use?" asked Hana.

"Why not use both?" suggested Miho. "But I have a feeling that we can only use one at a time..."

"Why?" asked Anzu, curious.

"It's only a single garage," began Miho. "We-"

"Just summon both tanks, then!" roared Momo, increasingly stressed. "We don't have all day!"

"OK, OK!" said Miho, trying to calm her down. "I wish for both tanks to appear."

She said that after the girls closed the garage, then opened it. Only the Panzer IV appeared.

"Huh," Miho reacted. "Let's close it, after we take out our tank."

Anzu wished for her Hetzer to appear, after the Panzer IV was removed; Mako drove it out by herself.

Nothing appeared in the garage.

"Bring the Panzer back in," Miho said. "And take out the Hetzer."

Yuzu brought the Hetzer out.

Afterwards, they closed the garage again, and wished for both tanks to appear. They opened it. Only the Panzer remained.

They tried it again, this time taking out the Hetzer. No Panzer appeared inside. They put the Hetzer back in, and tried again.

They kept doing it, until Yuzu and Mako were tired from going back and forth to drive their own team tanks.

"Huh," both Miho and Anzu pondered, while Yuzu and Mako both swayed, exhausted from the drive.

"Apparently," Mako moaned. "Only one tank can appear at a time."

"R-right," Yuzu chimed in, panting.

"Oh," Anzu said. "Then, it's settled! Miho! Let's take your tank!"

"Huh?" Miho responded.

"Yours is bigger than ours," said Anzu. "Right?"

"Oh yeah," Miho nodded.

"Whatever," said Momo. "You are right, but isn't it a little tight in there?"

"We'll deal with it," said Anzu. "If we're only three miles away, three miles are nothing to sneeze at."

"Oh, OK," Miho accepted it without much thought, but smiled at the fact that now they could drive in a tank together.

* * *

"This tank," said Mako. "Feels different."

"Well," Yukari commented. "It's still our tank."

"OK!" Miho said. "Are we all ready?"

"We're cramped in here!" Momo complained.

As usual, Mako sat in the driver's seat, while Miho sat in the commander's. Hana sat to her left, while Yukari to her right. Saori sat in the seat on Mako's right. Anzu ended up seating with Saori, while Yuzu and Momo sat in the seats of Hana and Yukari respectively.

"Your back feels big," commented Hana, causing Yuzu to blush.

"Your hair's getting in the way!" shouted Momo. "And it's getting tangled on my eyeglass!"

"Please, my hair is naturally curly," groaned Yukari. "It's only three miles; at least we can still breathe."

Momo only groaned, as Mako revved up the engine. The familiar sound echoed in the open garage, as she drove it out and in front of the weedy road.

"Alright," said Miho, looking out through the cupola. "Let's go."

"Wait," Anzu teased her. "You forgot to say it."

"Huh?"

"Hello?" Anzu said, waving her hand. "Isn't this a tank?"

"Wai-oh," Miho understood, clearing her throat. The tank shook, ready to go down the hill.

"Alright," she declared. "Panzer vor!"

* * *

"So cramped in here!" Saori and Momo both groaned loudly.

The tank, the pride of Oarai, was a Panzer IV Ausf. H. It was a good all-rounder tank, the jack-of-all-trades of the tanks. With good armor, decent firepower, and reasonable movement, it was the tank that saved the school in the tournament, and then in the annihilation match against the Selection University. Now, it was their first time riding the tank, in a world devoid of Senshadou.

Unfortunately, since they were moving in thick forest, moving proved to be harder than thought.

"Is it just me?" asked Mako. "Or the American forest is a little harder to go through?"

"Kudzu vines," Hana noted. "And so many trees...Some of them look familiar."

"Just be careful," said Miho, as she directed Mako to go around a particularly dense overgrowth of vines. "Although we're on a tank, vines can entangle on our tank's tracks."

"Of course!" Momo groaned. "I cannot believe that we're going through this in one tank! Why didn't we go in our own?"

"Remember, Momo?" Anzu chuckled. "That garage can only summon one tank at a time, so we had to take only one."

Momo only groaned in response.

"And why only one tank at a time?" asked Hana.

"Isn't it obvious?" asked Anzu. "The garage is big enough for only one."

"She's right," said Miho.

The tank continued to plow through the dense vegetation.

"Say," said Yuzu. "I smell something funny."

"Me too," said Hana. "But Yukari already explained it."

"Huh?"

"It's a bug spray," said Yukari. "I found it in the garage, and sprayed it all over the tank."

"Why?" asked Saori.

"It keeps insects such as mosquitoes away," she explained. "Plus, its label states that it also keeps fleas and ticks away."

"How is that even there?" asked Momo.

"I got bitten too many times," admitted Yukari. "So, I just wanted one, and it was there."

"That did not work for food," Saori said out loud. "It also appears that only those that we cannot really get from the city of Acta appears in our building."

"She's right," said Miho. "We can get food from Acta."

"But what about money?" wailed Momo. "Money is another problem! We use yens back in our world, but this is America! They use dollars!"

"We'll ask Mason," said Miho, as the tank plowed through a very dense area of vegetation. "Mako, I think we have to cross the road."

The tank edged close by the looping road, its gray asphalt cracked with age. Tiny plants sprouted through the cracks, only to be flattened by the occasional car driving through.

"Mako and everybody," said Miho firmly. "We have to cross, so please be quiet. Mako, when I say go, go! No matter what happens, just go. OK?"

"Gotcha," answered Mako.

"Ready?"

The girls held their breath, as Mako revved up the engine for maximum speed. One or two cars kept coming by. Then, after a moment, it was still.

"Go!"

The tank jerked, and climbed up the slope into the asphalt. Suddenly, they heard a huge noise.

"Go-go!" Miho yelled, as the glint of a truck started to appear.

The Panzer moaned, but pushed into the other side, just as a big rig drove by.

"Whew!" the girls panted.

"I hope the driver didn't see us," whispered Miho.

* * *

"What was that?" the driver blinked.

He kept driving the big rig, as his load lumbered by. He thought he saw a reddish-brown silhouette of a weird machine just get into the left side of the road. However, he was driving too fast to see it clearly.

"Or maybe it was a bear," he shrugged it off.

 _Ring!_

"Hey," he called on the phone. "What's up?"

"How's the trip?" the voice called over.

"Great!" he answered.

"Anything weird you saw?" the voice asked.

"Hmm?" he responded. "Nope, I think it was just me."

"Good," the voice replied. "Let us know if you see anything strange, like a runaway tank or something."

"There is no way," said the driver. "Fort Corpa, the nearest base, is too far away to be here. Anyway, who would even steal or drive a tank through this area?"

"Just letting you know," the voice answered. "And remember this: if you see something of a tank or an anomaly, contact us. We'll pay you for the trouble."

"OK," the driver answered. "But why?"

 _Click._

"Strange people," he pondered. "They turn off whenever I ask that question. Man, I am hungry. As soon as I unload this, I am going to Chick-wait, that restaurant is closed on Sunday! Eek, what bad luck!"

* * *

Miho sniffed.

"Allergy?" asked Saori, who blew into her nose.

"No," she replied. "I think somebody almost saw us."

"Good thing the driver didn't see us, then!" Momo grunted. "Or it's your fault for exposing us!"

"Calm down," said Anzu, reclining. "It's a new world; let's enjoy while we can."

"And are we there yet?" asked Yuzu.

"Based on the module," said Mako. "We should be arriving...now."

The tank jerked to a halt, and the sign in front read: FREEDOM PARK.

"Here we are," Miho said. "Let's park on this side; it looks flat enough. Yukari, take our your spray; we will need that."

The eight girls stepped out onto the ground. Their feet crushed and crunched at some vegetation; large numbers of weeds and saplings groaned and shuttered, as the girls hiked up the hill towards the park.

"Lots of mosquitoes!" Saori, Momo, and Yukari groaned, as they waved in the air.

"Even you, Yukarin?" asked Saori, slightly waving at a buzzing insect.

"I...I used too much on you guys," admitted Yukari. "By the time it was my turn, I realize that I sprayed too much, and did not have enough for me."

The girls hiked up the hill, and managed to enter an area of bare ground.

"Whew!" gasped Momo. "We made it!"

"Nice hike, huh?" panted Saori. "N-not used to that much exercise!"

Mako said nothing, but was too tired to say anything anyway.

"So," said Hana, who managed to maintain her composure. "Where are we?"

The girls looked around. The park was empty, except for a few people walking back to their cars. Picnic tables and roofed open spaces dotted the vacant spots; Saori and Hana both winced at the sight of litter around, although Hana managed to contain her expression more.

"Hey," said Yuzu. "Over there."

The girls looked. In the distance, a sparse crowd of people was mingling.

"Ah!" Mako said. "I recognize that crowd. That is the crowd where Mason is. Eh?"

Miho rushed past her, getting her attention. The others looked at her, running towards the crowd.

"Lovestruck, eh?" Saori grinned. "Come on, girls! Let's follow our leader!"

"Oh boy," Mako said. "Never seen Miho fall in love."

"Well-well," both Hana and Yuzu said, smiling.

"What a wild girl, eh?" Momo grunted.

"Chill, will ya?" Anzu requested her. "Let's go and follow to see her 'senpai.' Who could he be?"

The girls half-walked and half-jogged, following Miho. She kept running, then stopped nearby a thick bush. She peeked at the crowd, and blushed as she noticed Mason talking with a young boy and an older man.

"Shy, huh?" asked Saori, as the others caught up to her.

"Wah!" Miho jumped. "Oh! Yes, I am unsure how to meet him, especially with a crowd that big."

"And why?" Momo asked. Everybody could feel her stress now.

"Chill, will ya?" Anazu requested her again.

"This is nothing to worry about!" Momo said. "I am just! Arrghh! I am going!"

Momo suddenly stomped out and marched towards Mason. Anzu just shrugged.

"Is she OK?" asked Saori. "She's definitely stressed."

"She's still trying to adjust to this world," said Anzu. "But let her be; she'll recover."

The other girls followed, with Miho quickly catching up to Momo.

"You seem to like someone, huh?" a boy said to Mason, sighing. "Boy, I am jealous."

Momo stopped, as Miho caught up to her.

"Hey-hey!" Mason responded. "I was not saying I like-"

"Someone, eh?" Momo asked rhetorically.

The three people in the crowd turned around, and Mason gasped.

"Hey!" Mason called out, walking towards them. "What are you doing here?"

* * *

 **So, this is sort of a "breather episode" featuring more Turtle Team, more mysteries, and now more tanks! However, there are details here and there that will matter later on, so keep an eye out!**

 **And I apologize if the last half of the chapter seems rushed; my cable Internet got messed up, and I lost a large chunk of work! So, anyway, at least I managed to publish this!**

 **Panzer vor! Please review and PM me; every suggestion is appreciated!**


	10. Chapter 10: Close Encounters

**So, this chapter is going to be a game changer. I originally wanted to-wait, I am spoiling the story too much!**

 **OK, let's just get to the point.**

 **Let's encounter...of the third kind.**

 **Note: the chapter headline section of the FanFiction does now allow me to write "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." So, I shortened it.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10:** **Close Encounters**

"We found our way," Miho said politely but blushing, as she approached Mason. The rest of the girls joined in.

"Yup! And we came by-" Yukari began to blurt out, but Momo and Saori both clapped her mouth shut. All of them silently agreed to _not_ tell Mason about the tank, for now.

"Who are they?" asked Jung-sik. Pastor AK, however, had a strange grin on his face, and it unnerved Mason.

"Who are they?" asked Pastor AK in a tone that Mason knew all too well: sly and honest.

"Stop it," Mason moaned. "They're not my girlfriends..."

Despite that, Mason gave a quick glimpse at Miho, which she reciprocated. Both turned their eyes away, blushing. Saori noticed this, grinning slyly.

Mason sighed.

"OK," he finally said. "Jung-sik and Pastor AK, let's move to a place far away. Then, I will explain."

* * *

"OK," Mason said. "Here we are."

Mason, his friends (ahem, not "girlfriends"), Jung-sik, and Pastor AK all sat together in a row of picnic tables inside a picnic shelter. Mason was at one end of the row, so that everybody could see him. Pastor AK was on the other end, staring at him with a sly grin. Jung-sik sat between Pastor AK and Hana (who was on his left), glancing at her a couple of times. Hana, Saori, Mako, and Yukari all sat in one row with Jung-sik. Miho, Anzu, Momo, and Yuzu sat on the other row. Miho, however, was sitting right next to Mason on his left.

"So," began Mason. "Guys, I think we all need to introduce ourselves."

"Fair," replied Pastor AK. "Hello, girls. My name is Pastor Alexander Kingston Kohl, but I prefer to be called Pastor AK."

"Or just AK," added in Jung-sik.

"Shush," AK replied in a teasing manner, smiling.

"And I am Kim Jung-sik," said Jung-sik. "Kim is my last name, though."

"Oh!" all the girls replied, since they were Japanese.

"Hi there," said Miho. "I am Nishizumi Miho."

"Takebe Saori!" replied Saori.

"Isuzu Hana," answered Hana.

"Oh!" Jung-sik replied. "Are you related to a car company?"

"Eh?" asked Hana.

"Nevermind," said Mason. "Let's continue."

"Akiyama Yukari," said Yukari.

"Reizei Mako," replied Mako lazily.

"And you?" asked Mason. "I am Paine Mason."

"First time seeing you face-to-face," said Anzu, crossing her arms behind her head. "I am Kadotani Anzu."

"Kawashima Momo," said Momo curtly.

"Koyama Yuzuko," said Yuzu. "Or Yuzu."

"You like sweet potatoes?" asked Mason, suddenly flashing out a bag.

Anzu stared, her hands no longer eating imaginary chips. She slowly gave her empty bag to Yuzu, who crumpled it up. Mason reached out, got the crumpled bag and threw it away, and gave the bag of dried sweet potatoes to Anzu.

Anzu snatched it like a praying mantis, and proceeded to tear it up and gobble up a few pieces. She sighed in big relief.

"Ah...!" she sighed, very satisfied.

Momo shook her head, while the others grinned and snickered.

"Prez," Momo said. "Stop acting like a child."

"Just call me Anzu," she replied, munching on every bit like a prized morsel. "Ah, this is bliss."

Momo shook her head again.

"You like dried sweet potatoes, huh?" asked Jung-sik. "Say, your names sound familiar; where did I hear them?"

"You heard them long ago, remember?" Mason asked. "But it's not time for that; so, what are you all up to?"

"Well," said Miho. "We've been wondering where you were."

"And you came all the way here?" asked Mason, aghast.

The girls all nodded in silent affirmation. They and Mason knew not to talk about the Portal Motel.

"OK," Jung-sik said. "Who are you all exactly?"

"Oho," said Pastor AK. "Haven't you noticed that the girls have beautiful, big eyes?"

Anzu, Momo, and Yuzu just blinked, but all five other girls paled; Mason also paled. Mason forgot to tell them that the girls are different from the "real life" Americans, in having very big eyes. Eyes as big as baseballs, for Mason. Plus, the girls all look very "white" by American standards. Mason also realized that he forgot to tell them _why_ he knew them.

 _Oh no!_ he realized inside. _I should have told them earlier!_

The Anglerfish girls also paled, but for different reasons. Although the Turtle Team knew that they all were in America, the girls forgot to tell their Council members that they were not only illegals, but also looked different from others. They wanted to blend in, but forgot that their eyes stood out.

 _Uh oh_ , Miho realized. _We should have been more careful._

"Wait," Miho began. "Then, how was-"

 _Ring, ring!_

"Thomas?" Mason said, checking his phone; he was silently glad that his phone rang. "Thomas, what's up?"

A few seconds passed in silence from the crowd, then...

"WHAT THE! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!" Mason roared.

The girls jumped, while Jung-sik and Pastor AK shook their heads. The two men knew what was going on.

"Thomas!" Mason roared again. "I told you for the last time! You keep going to that drug house?! Buying crack and drugs is bad enough, and now the police is there! And where are you? You're safe? Safe? Well, you are indeed safe from capture, but now you have to wander in a random road, just to avoid capture! And now I have to come and get you home again!"

He blurted out very rapidly, each word shooting out like a bullet. He then slammed the phone on the table. Miho and all other girls winced.

"Sorry," he said. "I have to go!"

Mason ran to his car, while the others were left in silence.

"OK," Jung-sik began. "So, about you..."

He and Pastor AK found themselves alone, with a note on their table. Pastor AK took it and read it:

 _Sorry, we have to go. Thank you._

"Looks a little broken," said Jung-sik. "The girls must be new to America; they also sounded funny."

"They sure have big, beautiful eyes!" Pastor AK said, sounding like the Santa Claus. "Let's go and pray that we'll see them again."

"But why do they look familiar?" began Jung-sik, but he lost his train of thought when his own phone rang. Realizing that his parents were worried, he picked it up and headed home.

* * *

"That was close!" Saori gasped.

All of the girls were back at their tank, and Mako did not hesitate to rev up the engine; even she was panting a little.

"We forgot!" wailed Saori. "That we're not in Japan, and we're not in our world anymore!"

"A parallel universe?" suggested Mako, as she drove the tank carefully downhill.

"Yes," said Hana. "I guess so."

"But why do we have to be careful?" roared Momo.

"Well," Anzu said. "Let's get to the point. First, we're in America. Second, there is no Senshadou in this world. And three, we look different."

"How?" asked Momo.

"Look at ourselves," said Miho. "We look white, but we have large eyes. I guess everybody around us forgot; haven't you noticed that we look different from them?"

"Well," said Momo curtly. "Those three weird boys sure looked American, but with smaller eyes."

"Exactly," said Anzu.

"Smaller eyes?" asked Momo.

"See their eyes," Mako chimed in. "And ours?"

"Wait," Momo commented, starting to realize. "Hey, wait a second..."

Momo put her hands into a thinking posture, deep in thought. She blinked, and blinked. Sighing, she nodded.

"You got it," said Miho. "I am surprised that they noticed it right there. But nobody else seemed to notice."

"Wait," Yuzu said. "You mean, I remember you all traveling with Mason, and nobody commented on you all."

"They did comment us looking pretty," said Saori. "But nobody treated us as 'aliens' of some sort."

"Hmm," said Mako. "I have a feeling..."

"...that this has to do with the spy module," Miho finished Mako's train of thought. Both looked at each other, and smiled.

"Spy module?' asked the Turtle Team.

"Let's go to our base," said Miho. "And we'll discuss more fully from there."

* * *

Once again, the tank creeped over the terrain, and passed through the same road. This time, they saw not a single soul; the girls peacefully traveled back to their base. Parking the tank inside the garage, all of them came out, and breathed in relief.

"Man," said Momo, groaning as she stretched. "That was rough!"

"And," said Anzu, stretching to reveal her midriff. "We need more clothing."

"Can this strange building," said Yuzu. "Summon clothing?"

"Nope," Mako answered curtly. Momo moaned, while Anzu shrugged.

"I guess," said Miho. "We have to wait for Mason to come by. Oh!"

Her cell phone rang, and she took it up.

"Mason!" Miho called. "How are you doing? Yes. Yes. No, you don't have to. But..oh. OK. By the way, we need more clothing for our Turtle Team. Yes, wait. You need a moment. OK..."

She made motions with her hands. Her friends nodded, as Miho walked to a corner of the parking lot, far away enough to have a private talk.

"I wonder what they're talking about," said Yuzu.

"Love talk?" Saori suggested.

"In your face," Mako commented curtly.

"Hey!" Saori groaned, playfully wrestling with her.

Anzu snickered, and watched Miho's face changing back and forth, smiling and having a serious, thoughtful face.

"She sure adapted well to this world," said Anzu.

"But what about our home?" groaned Momo.

"Cheer up," Anzu answered. "We'll find a way, somehow. I think we should check out the spy module."

The others nodded unanimously, and went inside the garage. Yukari watched Miho for a while, before following others back in.

"I hope they're alright," Yukari said, as Mako turned on the spy module.

* * *

"OK," said Mason, the cold phone to his ear as he drove. Actually, he talked only when he was at a traffic stop. When he drove, he dropped the phone. Fortunately, Miho quickly understood that he was driving, and respectfully waited. After three traffic stops, Mason said everything that he wanted to say.

"That's all that I can say," said Mason. "I hope you understand."

Although the noise of cars filled the air, Mason noticed the silence from the phone.

"Oh..." Miho's voice finally rang through the phone.

"Yes," Mason sighed, as the light changed. "Technically, that's how I know of you all. And I drive."

He dropped the phone on his right seat, as he let Miho have some time to understand everything. He finally told her about the Japanese TV show called _Girls und Panzer_. He finally told her about how he knew each girl's name, due to that. He also knew of their battles, their personalities, and almost everything.

"Do..." Miho began, as Mason picked up the phone at the next traffic light. "Do...you know my body measurements?"

Mason dropped his jaws.

"Uh..." he said. "To be honest, no. Yukari said it out loud on the show, but I chose not to listen to that."

"Thanks," Miho said over the phone. "Then, I give you full permission to know it."

"Eh?"

"You don't have to," she teased him.

"Anyway," he said, as the light still did not change. "There is one thing that bothers me."

"What is it?" she asked.

"What is your bust size?" Mason asked.

"Eh?" Miho asked back.

"On the TV show," Mason began. "Your bust-oh, I have to drive."

He dropped the phone again, as the light turned green.

"Please," he moaned to himself. "I can't talk and drive at the same time, too nervous to do both. Please God, let the light be red."

The next light was red.

"Thank you!" he prayed out loud, as he took the phone up. "OK, Miho, I...I hope you understand. And sorry for that outburst back then."

"Hehe," he heard her giggle. He blushed.

"Thanks," Miho said. "Good luck saving your friend."

"Thank you," he courteously replied. "See you later."

"Have fun!" she said.

 _Click._

"Thomas!" he finally changed his mood. "I am going to tell you flat out loud, and no groaning this time."

* * *

"Good thing I have a feeling where you were!" Mason roared at his dirty friend. Apparently, Thomas stumbled out of a dense strand of bushes and vegetation.

"Eh," Thomas shrugged. "It's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal!" Mason shook his head, as he took out newspapers to cover his right seat. "Well, at least you're fine, but I don't want you to go to jail!"

"Hey," Thomas said, as he and Mason went into the car. "It's not a big deal."

"OK!" Mason ignored him. "Open your mouth."

Mason sniffed.

"Nope!" he said.

"Hey," Thomas began. "I'll just close-"

"Nope!" Mason firmly said, taking out a water bottle and a few pieces of gum. "Go, gurgle, and chew."

Thomas moaned, but obeyed. It was one of the few things that he obeyed in life.

"Better," Mason said, after smelling him again.

"Now," he finally said, as they all went in. "We're going."

It was a silent drive afterwards.

* * *

"We're here," he said, dropping off Thomas at a bus stop.

"Thank," Thomas began. "I-"

"I have to go!" Mason said, and revved up his engine. He drove away, but waved back.

Thomas waved back, and sighed.

"Man," he said to himself. "He's a real friend."

* * *

"A real friend..." Mason said to himself. "Also knows to not put other friends on the line."

He drove back home, cleaned up his car's interior, greeted his mom, and went out again. He finally sighed in relief.

"Now," he said to himself. "Where are the girls? Oh yeah, back to the motel!"

* * *

"Hmm," the girls watched the screen.

"Agents," hissed a familiar voice. "Nothing still?"

"Agent Father," a nervous voice began. "I-"

"We have a lead only here in Acta," Agent Father boomed through the screen. "And we have found only a few Filipinos. Haven't you seen anyone there?"

"We found three boys," said one of the agents, who sounded familiar.

"Hey," began Yukari. "Isn't that-"

Everybody shushed her, and Yukari silently watched.

"We have already deposed of the other Agents," said Agent Father. "For their failures. And you, Agent Tunis, are safe only because you managed to find three of them who slipped out that they know of some... _interesting girls_."

The girls blinked.

"It appears," said Agent Tunis. "That the three boys do not have much memory of who they were. What we do know, however, is that a group of girls went inside. Apparently, they appeared to have left some trace of interference."

"And do you have it?" asked Agent Father. The girls craned to look.

"Here," said Agent Tunis, taking out a pair of skewers.

Hana gasped.

"Somebody," explained Agent Tunis. "Apparently used these as chopsticks. From what I can tell, the people here do not all use chopsticks, and the user apparently was not a Filipino."

"And how did you find the interference?" asked Agent Father.

"I do not know how," Agent Tunis said, his calm voice growing a little more nervous. "But it has no fingerprints, despite being used clearly with fingers, but it can do this."

He took the skewers, and put it into a flower pot. At first, the rose plant did not react. Then, its three buds suddenly blossomed into beautiful roses: a white, a pink, and a red one appeared.

The girls gasped.

"One of those girls," said Agent Tunis. "Is what we're looking for."

"How did you do that?" whispered Saori.

"I don't know," Hana whispered back. "I only remember using the skewers as chopsticks, because they looked better than the actual ones provided. Wait, I think I wished or-"

"Excellent!" roared Agent Father, making the girls jump. "Now, all we need to do is use that skewers."

"Unfortunately," said Agent Tunis. "The interference on here cannot be extracted. We cannot determine who the user is, but we do know, from our enhanced interrogation techniques with two of the boys, that the girls seemed to have gone to another location, inside a white Honda Accord of something."

The Anglerfish girls stared at each other, horror etched on their faces.

"What's wrong?" Anzu asked.

"Why only two?" blared Agent Father.

"The other guy," said Agent Tunis. "Did not escape, but seemed to have suffered from a concussion when he accidentally tripped."

"You sure he didn't do that on purpose?" asked Agent Father.

"Sir," Agent Tunis said. "It was a complete accident. I saw it with my eyes. I know a real fall from a faked one. He had a nasty fall; we had to let him go."

"Hmm," said Agent Father. "And say, how do you know the interference was on the skewers?"

"Honestly..." Agent Tunis said. "I accidentally dropped my detector into the trash can, and it flashed."

"In other words," Agent Father said, groaning. "You cannot tell; you just guess."

"Yes," said Agent Tunis. "By chance, I found the skewers. And we have tracked down the Honda Accord to a nearby park."

The Anglerfish girls paled, while the Turtle Team looked on, curious.

"We tracked it down," said Agent Tunis. "To the Faba Park."

The Anglerfish girls sighed in relief.

"Well then," said Agent Father. "Go and find it."

"Thank you," said Agent Tunis. "And say, what is this device?"

"Supposed to do something," said Agent Father, as the girls noticed Tunis touching what looked like a strange tower-shaped disc. It suddenly spun around.

"I was told to keep it and use it," said Agent Father. "But I don't know."

"Say," began Saori. "What is that-"

 _Bzzzzzttt!_

The spy module's screen suddenly showed stripes of black and white, and the girls sighed.

"Oh shoot," Mako said curtly. "That thing apparently messes with our module."

"As long as they don't know that," Anzu smirked. "We'll be fine."

"Girls!" Miho came in.

"Miporin!" Saori yelled. "Are you going to tell us?"

"Yes!" Miho said, sitting down with them. "OK, so Mason told me..."

* * *

"We are at the location," said Agent Tunis, getting out of his sleek SUV. He brought with him another Agent, and a police cruiser.

"What are we looking for?" asked the officer, as he got out. "And we're at this park?"

"Yup," said Agent Tunis. "We call this Faba Park."

"That's an old name for this," said the officer. "People thought that it was a little weird, and voted to rename it, because it was historically used as an actual free space."

"Yes," Tunis stared up at the sign.

The wooden sign revealed bold, white letters: FREEDOM PARK.

"Yes it is," he admitted.

Agent Tunis then pressed a button on his watch.

"Hello?" he asked at the 3D image that appeared.

"Agent Tunis," said Agent Father, clad in a dark cloak. "You have done well. Let the two subordinates and the police officer deal with the situation. You are free today."

"And the health insurance?" asked Tunis.

"All paid and affirmed," he replied.

"Thank you," said Tunis.

"Logging off," said Agent Father, as Tunis took out a cell phone.

"Agents Copper and Tin," he called them. "You are in charge. You know what to do."

* * *

"Hey," Mason said, calling over the phone.

"So," said Anzu. "This is your phone number, eh?"

"Prez!" Momo called over the phone. "Stop feigning innocence. Are you flirting him?"

"What?" he did a double take. "F-flirting? Seriously, I have no girlfriend, you know?"

"Hehe," Anzu teased. "So, Miho told us everything."

Mason gulped.

"So we are the 'anime girls,' eh?" Anzu continued her teasing. "With big eyes and impossible feats of power, such as super strength. That's weird."

"How is that 'weird'?!" roared Momo through the phone.

"Girls!" Mason heard Miho's voice over the phone, making him blush. "Calm down; you all need to calm down."

"Let Miho talk," Mason called.

"Okeydoke!" Anzu replied.

"Okeydoke?" asked Saori.

"Who taught you that?" Mason heard Momo groan loudly. He winced at her uproar, hoping that she would calm down for once.

"It's America," said Anzu. "Cool down, will ya?"

"Hi," said Miho. "It's the second time we're talking today, right?"

"Y-yeah," Mason finally said. "You told them everything?"

"Yes!" roared the three voices of Saori, Yuzu, and Yukari.

"That makes a lot of sense," Mason heard Mako's low voice in the background.

"And why is that significant?" asked Momo suspiciously.

"Eh?" responded Mason. "Well, that brings to-oh yeah! I forgot!"

"What?" asked Miho, and Mason could hear other girls craning, squeezing into Miho's body closely to hear.

"One time," he began. "I saw a strange agent, and he said about the Corp-"

 _Bzzztttt!_

"What?" Mason jumped, when the phone's line got cut short. He tried to turn his phone on, but the phone flashed a blue screen with red words:

WARNING. THIS IS NOT AN EMERGENCY. WE WILL FIX THIS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

"Hmm..." he pondered. "This definitely is not a 'blue screen of death' of sort. And my phone company...nope, I am not telling them for now."

He sighed, and held his hands together.

"Please God," he said, closing his eyes. "If this is a sign, say something, please."

The phone's words suddenly changed, so a new screen appeared. This time, the screen was deep blue, with golden yellow words: GO SEE THEM QUICK.

"Eh?" Mason loudly asked. "Wait, that was too quick of a prayer...OK, I am going. Girls, please hold on."

* * *

"Hmm," said a man of tall, slim appearance. "Agent Tin, looks like somebody knows of our presence."

A man, dressed in the same black suit as the former, but darker-skinned and more robust, peered into his partner's watch.

"Yes," Agent Tin affirmed. "Agent Copper, good thing our device does that. The anti-detection pressurizer uses a bit of interference to literally interfere with anyone in our vicinity, who talks even a little about us."

"Useful," said Agent Copper.

"Yes," Agent Tin chimed in, whistling.

"Then," Agent Copper said, fixing his suit full of secret items inside; they rattled and made noises inside. "We have to get going."

* * *

"What happened?" Momo asked, incredulous.

The same screen appeared on their side.

"It says, 'THIS IS NOT AN EMERGENCY,' and other words," read Mako.

"So it was hijacked?" asked Hana innocently.

Everybody stood in silence. Even Anzu stopped chewing her snack.

"Let's..." whispered Miho. "Just try and focus on the screen."

Everybody silently agreed, and Mako worked frantically on the spy module, while Miho checked Anzu's phone.

"Is somebody..." Miho trailed off.

"Miho-san?" asked Hana.

Miho stopped looking at the screen, and tiptoed towards the door. Due to the heat outside, the girls closed the garage door. However, Miho quietly walked towards the door, and held her right ear close to the door.

"Mi-Miporin?"

Miho shushed at her friend and the others.

"How does she figure..." Momo trailed off, as Anzu gave her a look that silenced her.

"She's Miho," Anzu whispered, both serious and impressed. She knew that Miho was up to something.

* * *

10 minutes ago...

Three figures walked up towards the motel, crunching through the same old weeds and saplings that somehow managed to regrow back, despite being mowed by Mason's own car.

"***!" Agent Copper cussed. "These **** weeds are annoying!"

"Hold your tongue," said Agent Tin. "I say these are nothing compare to-****! This **** tree!"

A young tree sapling, despite being green, somehow managed to not only entangle with the Agent's suit, but also ripped it apart.

"That was a thousands dollars!" Agent Tin roared, stumping the poor sapling. "****! ****! ****! **** you, stupid tree!"

"Shush!" the police officer told them. "You told me to keep quiet; now you two are the loud ones."

The two Agents glared at him, and the officer wisely stepped back.

"The whole point of you," growled Agent Copper. "Was to help us keep the order in line. Unfortunately, your puny cruiser got stuck in the weeds, and crashed into a ditch! To make matters worse, it somehow crashed into both of our cars, and all three are now in the ditch! Now, we have to physically walk through this **** of a road."

The police officer stayed silent, but his face betrayed his disdain.

"So," Agent Tin said, noticing his watch suddenly make a variety of noises, from buzzes to clicks. "We are at the epicenter of the spike."

"What is this spike?" asked the officer. "None of you even told-"

"Hold your tongue," growled Agent Copper. "Cooperate long enough, and we will pay you well."

"For my daughter, right?" asked the officer.

"Who is dying of cancer, right?" sneered Agent Tin. "Must be a fine day to go to Heaven."

The officer held back his anger, gritting his teeth.

"And here we are," Agent Tin declared, after a long hike uphill.

Three men stood in front of the gate, with the giant, polished sign in blue and white saying: PORTAL MOTEL.

"This must be it," said Agent Copper. "Copy Father, we have a visual. Father?"

"Ah, ****!" Agent Tin groaned. "Our anti-detection pressurizer disrupted even our signal? Man, that is one unpredictable machine!"

"Guess the interference is a lot stronger than we thought," Agent Copper grunted.

The police officer wanted to say something, but wisely sealed his mouth shut. He had enough of their profanity, not to mention that one of them insulted his daughter's status.

 _What a heartless bunch_ , thought the officer. _At least they're rich enough to pay my daughter's medical bills_.

The two agents fixed their full suits, their black sunglasses glistening in the midday sun. Scanning the seemingly empty structure and its surroundings, the men nodded at each other.

"Officer," said Agent Copper. "Stay at the gate; watch for any trespasser.

The officer nodded in resignation, and leaned on the right side of the gate. He watched the men split up; Copper went to the right, while Tin surveyed the left.

Agent Copper noticed the garage door. The dark green door appeared freshly painted, but Copper took out what appeared to be a small tablet. He clicked the button: DETECT FINGERPRINT. The device flashed a cone of lime-green light, which exposed fresh fingerprints on the door and the button nearby; they appeared as yellowish-brown tints. He then pressed the button next to the garage door, but nothing happened.

"Agent Copper," a voice pierced through the earphone in Copper's right ear.

"Yes?" he answered.

"I have checked the other half of the building's perimeter, and found an open window," Tin replied.

"Copy that," replied Copper. "I am on my way."

He came over to where Tin was, who was checking through the window, scanning inside with his own tablet. His shoes, fitted with a wall-climbing device, allowed him to stay stuck to the wall below the window.

"Gecko Guy," Copper teased Tin.

"Shut up," Tin replied. "Copper, we have no visual of any living being inside, not even an insect. This place is unusually clean."

"How so?" Copper asked.

"Too clean," Tin muttered. "The type of cleanliness only a girl will do."

"Guys can be as clean as girls!" Copper argued.

"Well," Tin grunted. "What about you?"

"Eh..." Copper realized. "Fine, but what strikes you as odd?"

"Well," Tin began. "That room appeared to be..."

Tin trailed off, as Copper turned around. The police officer also approached them. The three stared at the sight before them.

"What the..." Copper gasped. Tin blinked, wiping his eyes. The officer raised an eyebrow.

"A group of girls?" the officer finally asked. "Are they what you two are looking for?"

"Eh..." the two agents were flabbergasted. The Corporation warned them that the source of the "interference" could be anything...

* * *

"Now I warn you," said Agent Father, prior to tracking down the spike. "Be careful with the interference."

"Please," said Agent Tin. "Explain to us exactly why."

"The interference," said Father. "Is like the fossil fuels. In their refined state, they work wonders around the world. They drive the America, the world's most powerful nation. They drive the world's economy. In their raw state, however, the fossil fuels are poisonous and dangerous to the environment."

"However," the Father continued. "Unlike the fossil fuels, which are created from dead matter, the interference is present especially in living beings. Anything living from the 'other side' that comes into this Earth can continuously generate this interference."

"But how can we extract it?" asked Copper.

"We extract it from dead beings and inanimate objects from that world," said Father. "But, so far, we find living beings to have infinitely more, and can generate it again and again."

"And what kinds of creatures can we expect?" asked Copper.

"Animals and living things," Father curtly answered.

"And what happens to the living things?" asked Tin.

"Time's up!" Father declared. "Go on your mission."

* * *

"Animals and living things," muttered Tin. "But girls?"

Eight girls stood in front of the three men. The girls were visibly as confused as the men. An awkward moment of silence passed, as the birds chirped innocently in the background, but slowly but surely died down, as the clouds started to cover the bright sky.

By the time, somebody managed to speak up, half the sky was gray.

"Um..." Miho began. "Hello, there?"

"Whatever," Agent Copper said, nodding to his partner. Before the girls knew it, the two men took out what looked like taser guns, and fired. Strange, metallic ropes wrapped around all eight girls, causing them all except Miho to fall down.

"Uf!" they groaned, wincing from the fall.

"Now," Agent Copper said. "Tell me who you are, or else."

"Or else what?" Momo roared.

"Be gentle, will ya?" asked Tin. "Or this will silence you."

He clicked a button on his tablet.

"AHHHHHHH!"

Eight screams echoed in the forest, as the ropes suddenly jolted them with a strange pulse of electricity.

"Confirmed," Agent Copper remarked, as the girls reeled from the pain.

"Hey!" the officer objected. "What are you doing?"

"Tasing the girls," Tin curtly replied.

"That's no taser!" the officer roared. "What is that you pushed?"

"I guess we have no choice," said Agent Copper, pulling out a strange silver rod about 5 cm long. "But we'll tell you."

"This is the enhanced interrogation device," said Agent Tin, as he pushed another button. The girls screamed, as more pulses shot through their bodies.

"It is harmless to normal humans," said Agent Copper, clicking a button on the rod. It slowly extended to double the length, and a blue light blinked from the top of it.

"However," said Tin. "A being with what we call 'interference' is vulnerable to it. We simply over-dose the girls with it, and the girls are shocked as if tased. This is proof that these girls are aliens."

The police officer gasped, as he watched the girls, clearly disturbed.

The girls winced in pain, too hurt to even ask them. Miho, however, shook herself awake, and looked up at them, her eyes full of pain. The officer was surprised that her eyes showed not a single hint of anger, but just innocent determination.

"S-sir?" she managed to say it. "W-what are you doing?"

The agents said nothing, but clearly impressed with her determination.

"Y-yeah!" Yukari snapped out of her state.

"It hurts!" Saori and Mako both groaned.

"It is quite a pain," Hana managed to speak with some effort.

"What is this!" Momo roared.

"Ouch..." Yuzu muttered in pain.

"Eek," Anzu winced. "Not just a rope to bind us, huh?"

"Impressive," said Agent Copper.

"Never knew that even they could resist it," commented Agent Tin.

Agent Tin then walked towards Miho, grabbed her chin with his left gloved hand, and looked at her in the face. His black, cold glasses flashed a glint from the Sun.

"Very large, round eyes," said the Agent. "Pure, pale skin without a single blemish or even wrinkle. Obviously impossible for a real human."

The girls gasped, despite their pain.

"Human?" asked the officer. "They obviously look human enough!"

Agent Copper kept his rod-like device focused on the officer, who kept his distance.

"You see them?" Agent Tin asked the officer. "Do you know why I bring you here?"

"To be an eyewitness to some sort of a break-in," answered the officer.

"Correct," said Agent Tin. "But it looks like we won't need any witness."

"Say wha-"

A bright blue light flashed out of the rod-shaped device. The girls instinctively looked away, eyes closed. The light blasted the officer a few meters away, before collapsing on the asphalt floor. The Agents just grunted.

"Another casualty," remarked Agent Copper.

"At least it's not murder," said Agent Tin. "But the blast erases his memory, and knocks him unconscious."

"Anyway," said Copper, turning to face the girls. The girls tried to free themselves from their bonds, but to no avail.

"What are we going to do with them?" asked Copper. "Wait until the Corporation finds us?"

"The Corporation?" asked the girls.

"No," said Agent Tin. "We will have to physically take them to a nearby location."

"How?" asked Copper.

"Easy," said Tin, kicking the sleepy Mako in the left leg. She groaned in pain.

"Hey!" Saori screamed. "You don't kick a girl!"

"I do not kick a girl," Tin replied. "Unless she's an alien."

Saori and the others paled, while Mako writhed in pain from the blow.

"Now tell me," said Agent Copper. "Who are you girls?"

"Us?" asked Yukari innocently. "We are-"

"What do you want from us?" Momo deliberately interrupted; Miho motioned with her eyes to give her and others the cues to not tell.

The Agents said nothing, but Agent Copper held his watch, stuck to his right arm. He pressed a button, and a mechanical voice resonated from it:

"INTERFERENCE SPIKE DETECTED. EIGHT BEINGS OF UNKNOWN BIOSIGNATURE DETECTED. INTERFERENCE SPIKE DETECTED," rang the voice. The scratchy voice annoyed Saori, Hana, and Yuzu.

"Guess even the Corporation does not know everything," remarked Agent Copper, as the girls kept trying to twist their way out of their bonds.

"But eight spikes," said Agent Tin. "From eight girls. Well, this is one big bounty we've got."

"What are you going to do with us?" Momo again roared.

"You know," said Agent Copper nonchalantly. "We've been wondering the same thing. We follow orders, and the order was loud and clear..."

"Go and capture any source of interference," said Agent Tin. "Well, it surprises me that a group of big-eyed girls from a different dimension could hold such a power, although we did hear a rumor of our boss capturing a human from the 'other side.'"

"Other side?" all eight girls responded. "And power?"

The word "power" somehow gave them some strength; they really need it now...

"Even you girls do not know it, huh?" remarked Agent Copper.

"Don't tell them too much," said Agent Tin. "Or else they could break their own fragile bodies."

Momo growled, while the other girls raised an eyebrow at the man's comments.

"Say," Agent Copper said, kicking the poor Mako, who was trying to sleep. "What now? Our communications have been blocked for some reasons, and the only option is that one of us stands guard, while the other goes to reconnect with our base."

"Base..." Yukari pondered.

"How many times did I tell you," said Agent Tin, growling to his face. "That Fort Corpa is not our base anymore?"

Yukari sighed.

"It was, wasn't it?" asked Copper.

"Let's get to the point," said Tin. "OK, we found eight girls, who are the source of the interference spike, and they harbor a good amount of power that even we cannot comprehend. Fortunately, the girls do not understand it either, so we are safe for now."

"But why does the Corporation want the girls?" asked Copper.

"Hello?" said Tin sarcastically. "Interference is this mysterious essence that allows us to do the unthinkable? And we're paid handsomely to do this, remember?"

"Very much so," said Copper. "I am looking forward to an early retirement. Eight spikes of interference are more than enough for a lifetime vacation."

"And why," began Anzu, using that same tone of manipulation she did before. "Do you like interference so much?"

"It pays well," Copper answered curtly.

"But do you know how to use it?" asked Anzu slyly.

"Shut up, puny girl," growled Tin.

"Well, a puny girl like me need some discipline, do I?" asked Anzu, pretending to be offended.

Unbeknownst to the Agents, Miho was slowly cutting off her rope with a retractable knife, given to her by Saori, who had it in her pouch. A while ago, while the agents were using a watch to check the girls' "interference," Miho got a tug from Saori, who motioned with her eyes to look at her right pouch. Noticing the knife, Miho carefully grabbed it with her bound hands, and started to cut her bond. Seeing this, Anzu and her crew winked at Miho, who nodded back in return.

"You want discipline?" asked Tin, pressing the same button to send another pulse of energy. All eight girls winced, but resisted the urge to scream. Miho almost cut her own delicate hands as a result; fortunately, she cut off one of the ropes. She then leaned on Saori and Yukari, in order to hide her effort.

"That's one shock," grunted Anzu.

"Well," Agent Copper said. "We'll need a ride back, but the **** police car is stuck in the weeds."

"Eh?" asked Yukari. "What happened?"

"Stuck in the weeds," said Agent Copper. "And crashed into a ditch."

"Including our own," added in Agent Tin. "You girls like to nose into things, eh?"

"Ditch?" asked the girls.

"What?" Agent Tin asked. "Are you surprised?"

"There was no ditch when we're here," said Saori.

"Well, stupid girls," began Agent Copper. "How will we..."

Everybody heard something, and stared at the gate. A white Honda Accord came up out of the hill, rolling in and stopping in front of the group. A young teenage boy stepped out, stretching.

"Ah!" said Mason. "Good afternoon, say, I saw two cars and a cruiser in a ditch of sort. And frien...eh?"

He first noticed the unconscious body of the police officer, who was to the left of his car. He then noticed the two agents in black suits. He finally noticed eight girls bound in slightly glowing ropes.

It didn't take long for Mason to figure out what was going on.

"So," he began. "I guess I am arrested, too?"

The Agents blinked, clearly shocked at his reaction. They expected him to flee in the car, so they touched a hidden button on their left sides. Miho, Mako, and Anzu noticed this. However, Mason's remark took the agents off-guard, giving Miho enough time to cut all of her ropes except for one.

"Well," began Mason. "What are you-uf!"

Making glances at each other, the Agents decide that a car nearby was better than nothing, and slammed poor Mason to the car.

"Ouch!" he roared. "Don't dent my car, or especially the girls!"

"We'll borrow your car," said Agent Copper.

"You men definitely arrest like police officers," groaned Mason. "But you're not, by the way you bound my friends around!"

"Who are you?" asked Agent Copper, using his watch to check him. "Hmm, just an ordinary human."

"****, ***** ****** *****," said Agent Tin.

"Sorry?" asked Mason. "I am not Chinese."

"Oh," Tin realized. "Well then, ****** ***** *****."

The girls growled at that part. Although Mason did not understand what they were saying, the girls knew them loud and clear.

"He. Is. Our. Friend!" Yukari retorted. "And he's not Japanese, either!"

"Watch your language, perverts!" Saori roared.

"An ugly use of Japanese profanity," Hana bluntly said, and all three Turtle girls nodded in affirmation.

"For an American," Anzu growled. "You two men sure seem more _Nazi_ than American."

The two agents glared at Anzu, as they cuffed Mason down.

"Now, little boy," said Agent Copper, slapping him on the head.

"Ouch!" Mason winced.

"Your parents never spanked you, eh?" taunted Agent Tin, kicking him.

This time, Mason bit his mouth shut; he realized that the agents were mocking him. Miho gritted her teeth, trying to hold her anger.

"You know perfectly well," said Mason. "That you are NOT treating me well."

"Of course," Agent Copper sneered, as Miho worked frantically to cut the last rope, which turned out to be harder than she thought.

"And let us be civil," mocked Agent Tin.

"Who ARE you?" asked Agent Copper again.

"Why do you want to know?" asked Mason. "If you're going to erase my memories?"

The girls gasped. Miho stared, then frantically tried to cut her last rope.

 _Crack._

The knife broke.

"No use of that blade, now," mocked Agent Copper, smiling maliciously.

Miho gasped.

"That rope is impossible to break," said Agent Tin. "Partially made with diamonds, especially the last rope. And the memory eraser is ready to be used."

"You got it," Agent Copper answered, holding the same silver-gray rod out. Its blue light started to flash.

"We can check your driver's license," said Agent Tin, as he opened the front door. Mason slammed it shut.

"Tell me my rights," said Mason, growling. "As any police officer should do."

The agents growled.

"Alright," Agent Tin grunted, as Agent Copper started to ready his memory eraser. The rod started to flash, ready to fire.

"You," began Agent Tin.

Miho sweated, then remembered about that "interference" thing as "power."

"Are."

Miho then stood up. The agents ignored her.

"To."

Miho then physically tensed her muscles, trying to rip the rope by force.

"Remain."

Miho turned red in the face, as the rope slowly started to break apart.

"Silent," finished Agent Tin, as the Agent Copper pressed the button.

A huge flash of light shot from the rod...

* * *

"What the..."

The two agents stood there, stunned. Everything was silent all around; even the birds stopped chirping, as the flash of light seemed to fill the entire area around the Motel.

However, Mason was nowhere in front of them. Agent Copper then snapped out of his trance, and shook his partner.

"Hey!" he replied. The two then turned around. All girls were there, still bound, except-

"Just in time," a panting voice replied.

The agents looked around, then looked up.

Two figures were on the roof of the motel. One was sitting down, his hair messy from the restraining hands of the agents. He fixed his glasses carefully. The other was standing straight and tall, her hands clenched. Her soft, light brown eyes glared at the agents below.

"You shall not pass," she slowly said, her voice tinged with indignant calm.

"Little girl," Agent Copper said. "You are one strong girl."

"How was that possible?" Agent Tin asked. "Even the fastest dodges cannot dodge that flash!"

Miho took out something from her right hand, holding it out. It flashed in the afternoon sun, glaring down upon the agents.

"Thank you, Saori-chan," said Miho. "For letting me borrow your mirror."

"You're welcome!" Saori answered.

"A mirror?" asked Momo.

"A hand mirror," answered Mako. "Nice one."

"You!" Agent Copper roared. "What the ****! How did a mirror manage to absorb that?"

"He's right," Anzu said. "A mirror only reflects, but cannot...wait, Miho, did you?"

Miho smiled, as she waved the mirror. It radiated a faint, blue glow.

"No way," Agent Copper stared, flabbergasted. Then, he checked his memory eraser.

"She stole it," Agent Tin declared.

"Not stole," said Miho. "The mirror absorbed it."

"How did a normal mirror," said Agent Copper. "Not only manage to deflect it, but also absorb it?"

"You said something about 'interference,'" said Miho. "So, I guess that it was your idea of 'power.' Hearing that, I speculate that our 'power' is the same as the one you use to erase memories. But, not sure whether it could harm me, I decide to 'wish' that it will remain in the mirror."

"So our memory eraser is useless now," said Agent Copper, gritting his teeth.

"Actually," said Miho. "It still works, as long as it stays intact. The mirror temporarily absorbed it; I don't really know how, except that I just 'wished' that it would. Also, you men refer to this 'interference,' as if it's some sort of magic. I read a few manga books, enough to give me ideas on this 'interference.'"

"Cool!" Yukari yelled out.

"Nice move," Anzu complimented.

"Just kick them away!" Momo screamed. "We'll try to WISH that we can free from our grasp!"

"It does not work that way," Mako grunted. "Sometimes, it works. It's sort of 'limited wish-granting,' if I put it correctly."

"Mason," said Miho, giving him the mirror. "Hold this."

"You go girl," he replied, holding out his right hand in a fist bump. Miho blinked.

"Fist bump," he explained. "Another American way of high-five and handshake. It looks more...'military' and awesome."

Miho smiled, and gave him the fist bump with her left hand. She then jumped down gracefully, and faced the two agents.

The whole sky was gray, except for a single hole in the clouds. The afternoon sun managed to pierce through, its lonely ray of light flashing on the Motel below. Birds, silent before, started to chirp. Vultures started to fly over the motel.

Miho stretched her back and arms, while cracking her fists.

"Now," she said. "Let's get through this."

* * *

 **Oh, what will happen? Who will win?**

 **Anyway, thank you to everyone who not only PM's me, but also reviews this chapter! Please review this, giving me any advice that helps.**

 **Plus, favorite AND follow. I don't know why the FanFiction separates the two apart, but do both, just in case.**

 **And panzer vor!**


	11. Chapter 11: The First Battle

**Now, the fun begins. Are you ready? FIGHT!**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: The First Battle**

Miho stood straight on the smooth asphalt, staring intensely at the sinister men standing before her. The gray sky covered what remained of the afternoon sun, except for a single ray of light, which dimly lit the space between Miho and the agents.

Miho breathed deeply, while stretching her hands. The light grew thinner.

"I don't know who you are," said Miho. "But you are up to no good."

The agents said nothing, as they slowly reached into their pockets. The light grew thinner.

"And nobody," said Miho, calm as ever. "Treats human beings like that."

The light was now as small as a manhole.

"Not against my friends," Miho continued, standing her ground proud and tall.

The agents clenched their hands, grabbing something in their suits.

"And not," said Miho, as the light shrank to the size of a small hole. "Against Mason."

The light disappeared, and the agents fired.

Miho dodged to the left, as two strange bullets flew through, the bright green lights hitting nearby where the girls were; they sent out strange sparks, as if electric. She dashed to the car, on the other side of the agents. The agents, startled, then watched her from the windows.

"Please!" Mason called. "Do NOT fire at my windows! I don't know how to explain to my mom if they get broken!"

"In your face," said Agent Copper, as he took out a baton, extended it, and was about to swing it-

 _Bang!_

"Ouch!" Agent Copper winced, as a kick to his face knocked him to the ground, the baton flying in the air. Seeing her nearby, Agent Tin backed away, whipping out a strange device that looked like a cell phone, and fired it.

Miho dodged it, and watched as a strange puddle of orange liquid formed on the asphalt, which then quickly disappeared.

"Another form of interference," said Tin, growling. "But that wasted half of it!"

"Watch it!" Agent Copper roared. "She's not the problem; get the mirror!"

"Don't worry about it," said Miho. "He's not going to use it."

They stared at her.

"The winner will get it," she bluntly said. "And I intend to keep fighting to the very end."

"Suit yourself," growled Agent Copper. "Tin, you get the girls. I will deal with her."

Copper stretched his muscles, then took off his suit. A few strange gadgets fell from the suit, but he did not care as he threw them to the side, while kicking the gadgets away.

"I am going to crush your bones," said Copper, cracking his knuckles. "You should not have mastered the interference by now."

"Why?" asked Miho.

"Because I did!" he roared, charged in, and hit her with his open right hand.

"Ouch!" she screamed, as a strange pulse struck throughout her body. She jumped away, just as Copper was about to grab her with both of his arms. She jumped again, as Agent Tin blocked the other girls away from her.

"Ouch," she groaned, as she leaped to the roof.

"You OK?" Mason asked. He dashed to her, but carefully as the roof was triangular.

"Stay there," she replied, wincing. "Oh, that hurt!"

"Interference here," Copper smirked, showing his palms. The girls and Mason gasped, as what looked like red blood vessels coursed through his palms.

"I call them," Copper continued. "Vampiric palms. I personally made this; it sucks a little bit of blood, nothing more. But I hit you enough, and you will feel too tired to even fight."

"Agent Copper," Agent Tin whispered. "Watch that move; interference is still dangerous, you know."

Tin checked upon the girls, who stopped struggling with their ropes. Unbeknownst to him, Saori had _another_ knife, and allowed Anzu to get a hold of it from her left pocket. Silently feigning innocence, Anzu gave an occasional smirk as she slowly cut her own rope.

"And I intend to weaken her," said Agent Copper. "Then, we can deal with the rest."

"Miho!" Mason called, but she did not answer. She thought for a moment, then jumped down; Mason noticed her eating something.

"Oho," said Copper. "Let's fight, then!"

"Hey," began Tin. "I saw-"

He did not finish, as Copper bumped into him, and slammed into her, his hands on Miho's chest. Miho got knocked back, but landed on her feet, clenching her chest. Agent Copper's hands were now coursing with red lines that now looked more like paint.

Miho winced.

"Little girl," Agent Copper said. "You failed to dodge, eh?"

"Agent Copper?" Agent Tin asked, eyes wide open. "W-wait!"

"I am getting you!" Copper lunged for Miho, who deliberately did not dodge. He grabbed her arms, and drained her blood with his palms.

"Yes!" he cackled, as his hands became redder and redder. "Now, you lose!"

"Agent Copper!" Tin realized, but it was too late.

Miho smiled, wrestled herself free, and jumped away. She then drew out something that looked like a tiny umbrella.

White with a red cap.

"Thank you for draining my poisoned blood," she replied calmly. "Fly agaric mushroom is poisonous, after all."

"What!" Agent Copper roared. "How did you-you...oh..."

He wobbled back and forth.

"I knew it!" Agent Tin blurted out. "I thought I saw you eat something! Fly agaric mushroom? Poisonous! And how did it course through your blood so fast?"

"Aye..." Agent Copper wobbled back and forth.

"I thought about interference," she explained. "And I wondered, because you guys seem to call it 'power.' My mom explained that we have power in the blood. Blood, I thought. So, despite Copper saying that I have no experience with controlling it, I decide to give it a try."

"And you," said Tin. "Somehow successfully caused the poison to get into your arms, so Copper..."

"Essentially took all of my poison out," she finished. "And yes, he looks bad."

Copper was wobbling around, as if hallucinating.

"Don't worry," said Miho. "You will be fine, if you drain all that blood out."

"Aye..." Agent Copper blankly obeyed, as he clapped his hands together. A strange ball of red formed, and his hands were clean and white. He then threw it into the forest, then collapsed, exhausted.

"He's fine," said Miho, as Tin checked him.

"So," said Agent Tin. "No more tricks here."

"I don't trust you," Miho bluntly said.

"So do I," said Agent Tin, clenching his fists. He reached out into his suit, but stopped as Miho charged at him. She grabbed both of his arms, each with her own arm, and wrestled with him. The two kept this for a while, trying to gain the upper hand.

"Strong girl," Tin remarked. "That slim body of yours has a lot of interference, but you should be weak from the lack of blood!"

"My mom and former school trained me," Miho answered. "And I intend to keep fighting. Plus, I have recovered my blood."

"What?" Tin asked, aghast. "So, you already mastered it subconsciously, eh?"

"Maybe," Miho answered, still wrestling.

"But can you?" taunted Tin, as he tried a false move, but Miho anticipated it. She twisted his arms, forcing him to retract and maintain his stand.

"It's a long brawl, eh?" groaned Tin, as the two kept wrestling each other.

Agent Copper laid on the ground, panting for breath. Anzu made a face, as she was trying to cut the last rope.

"This is between you and me," said Miho.

"Yes, it is!" grunted Tin.

"Not you," said Miho.

"Eh?"

Anzu blinked, then smiled. She cut the last rope down, and looked at the knife.

"I guess it's stronger than the one Miho used," whispered Saori, as Anzu proceeded to cut the ropes of Yukari.

"Why her first?" asked Momo, almost yelling.

"Hush," whispered Anzu. "She has experience with reconnaissance, and maybe a little martial arts, do you?"

"Well," said Yukari. "Maybe not as skilled as Nishizumi-dono."

The two kept wrestling with each other. Although Agent Tin was larger and more muscular than Miho, she held her ground with amazing strength.

"I think that Tin guy," said Saori. "Is about 183 cm tall, but looks way bigger due to his broad torso."

"Nice fighting there," Yukari whistled, as Anzu continued to cut the last three ropes binding her.

"And quite elegant," said Hana. "While the Tin-sama is fighting like a sumo, Miho-san is fighting like a dancer."

"And a pro at it," remarked Anzu.

"Prez!" Momo roared. "Stop watching them like a spectator! We're in trouble!"

"I know," answered Anzu, as she was on the last bind. "But it's fun."

"And entertaining," said Yuzu. "Maybe we should take some self-defense. Right, Momo-chan?"

"Stop calling me Momo-chan!" she groaned. "And why _not_ me first? I want to get out of this bind!"

"Like I said," said Anzu, as she cut the last rope. Yukari stretched her freed hands, groaning in relief. "I will free Miho's teammates first, then ours. Yukari, go and sneak away while they are fighting."

"Roger that!" she answered, saluting. She then saluted at Mason on the roof, and he reciprocated it. Yukari then sneaked to the garage, as the fight raged on in the background.

"Nice fighting!" groaned Agent Tin. "It's only because I have an energy recharger that keeps me going!"

"Using the interference?" asked Miho, maintaining her cool.

"Clever girl," he answered curtly. "You must be the leader, to be this strong."

"I am," she politely answered back. "And I am not intending to back down."

* * *

The two kept wrestling, for what seemed like hours. However, Anzu checked her phone, which somehow still had its clock working.

"It's been 10 minutes," she said, as she was on the last rope that bound Saori. "But it sure looks like an hour."

Momo groaned, visibly discomforted by her ropes.

"Hang in there," Anzu replied, as she freed Saori, who then stretched and wasted no time in going to her team room, searching for more knives or blades to cut with.

"And you are weakening," grunted Agent Tin. Miho was sweating badly, but still kept her cool face.

"I may be," she replied. "But I have friends to protect. My comrades, my friends, my Mason."

Mason and Miho both blushed at that.

"Ha!" Agent Tin answered. "Let's see if you can resist any longer!"

* * *

The two continued to try and gain the upper hand. Miho then tried her own tricks, but Tin anticipated them. She tried to trip him with her feet, but Tin kept backing away to avoid them. Tin then tried to bash her with her own skull, but Miho backed away to avoid him. It was essentially one long wrestling match, with each trying to both attack and dodge all at the same time.

"What a fight," Anzu commented, checking her watch. "20 minutes into the fight."

Saori came back with more knives, and helped to cut the binds of Hana, while Anzu continued cutting Mako's. Both were freed, and stretched. Wasting no time, Mako then sort of dashed (more like, trying to walk fast) to the garage to deal with the electronics, while Anzu and Saori both stretched.

"Now us!" Momo yelled.

"Hold it," Anzu answered, as she commenced cutting Yuzu's ropes. "You need to calm down; let me help her."

Saori then started to cut Momo's.

"Why don't we help take him down?" Momo screamed.

"Miho wants this to be a fair fight," Mako said, as she came back with a tablet. "Let her fight."

"Can't I come down?" asked Mason.

"Nope!" Miho yelled. "Please stay there."

"I am NOT a damsel in distress!" Mason moaned. "Why am I being one?"

"You are," Mako nonchalantly replied. Mason sighed, and just sat there, watching the ensuing fight with concern.

Tin and Miho kept fighting, fighting, and fighting. Momo and Yuzu both stretched, relieved to be free of their bondage. Mako fidgeted with her gadget, while the everyone except Yukari watched. Then, Yukari came back from her room, brining her military backpack.

Now, everyone watched, as the fight continued.

"Can't we just cooperate?" groaned Momo.

"She wanted it to be a fair fight," both Anzu and Mason answered in unison. The two looked at each other, and smiled in agreement.

"Argghh!" Momo groaned. "I want to help her!"

"Because you like Mason?" asked Yuzu.

"H-hey!" she reacted, startled. "It-it's not like I like HIM or anything!"

* * *

The fight continued on; Anzu and others checked their time, and it was definitely 40 minutes since the fight began.

Now, both were starting to feel tired.

"How-how long were we fighting?" Tin grunted, as he accidentally loosened his grip.

Miho noticed that, and on impulse threw him with a judo throw. However, she threw him rather lightly, and focused on restraining the man.

"No more false moves," Miho answered. "And not yet, friends. Wait until I tell you."

"Clever girl," Tin replied. "But you activated my trap."

"Eh?" everybody gasped.

A blue light flashed from the back of the Agent's suit. Reacting fast, she turned him just in time, as the asphalt blocked the light.

"Clever girl," he said. "Memory erasers come in a variety of forms. But that is the least of your problem."

"What do you mean?" Miho asked.

"Check this," Tin said, turning his head around spitting something out.

"Eww!" the girls reacted, as the spit landed on the asphalt. Then, the whitish mass started to turn green, and grew.

The girls gasped.

"Another manifestation of the interference," he explained. "If the memory eraser does not work, then this should."

"Wait a minute!" Momo roared, charging at the spit. "What is this—ahh!"

The spit suddenly turned red, and jumped at her. Miho saw this, and tackled her just in time. The spit missed Momo and Miho by mere centimeters, as it landed on the other side. Agent Tin then stood up, fixing his suit.

"Transform," he commanded the spit, which morphed into a pinkish mass and grew in a few seconds. The girls gasped, horrified as it started to develop a concrete form.

The mass formed a head, two hands, and two feet. Then, parts of it turned black, and the surface turned from pinkish to dark brown. In a few seconds, it morphed into a complete clone of the Agent.

The girls gasped, horrified.

"Interference has a variety of uses," Agent Tin explained. "One obvious way is cloning. In real life, cloning is a ridiculously long, complex process that has more problems than solutions. With interference, it is infinitely easier to do."

"Unfortunately," he continued. "This form of interference is only temporary, since it is created from 'imperfect' versions of the interference. That's why the Corporation needs a fresher, better source of interference, and my detector senses a lot of it from you."

He pointed at the girls. Miho was pale in the face, but held her ground. Anzu also approached, and stood at a distance next to Miho.

"C-can I come down?" asked Mason.

"Nope," Miho said, smiling up at him. "You're safe there; he's not done yet."

"Clever girl," both Tin and his clone responded in unison. The overlapping of their voices sent shivers down the spines of everyone present.

"It looks like the girls now know much," the clone replied.

"And so does that boy," Agent Tin remarked.

"What should we do?" asked the clone.

"Kill them all," said Agent Tin.

The girls gasped, and Mason, in a huge burst of adrenaline, jumped down, rolled on the ground (he saw a clip on Internet that this was crucial to jumping down carefully), and shielded the girls.

"Hold it right," he panted. "I-I may not be strong, but I am a man! A young man! And you shall not lay a single bloody hand on my friends!"

The Agent and his clone both laughed, sending more chills down the girls' and Mason's back.

"Your girlfriends?" both of them taunted him.

"M-maybe!" he answered. Miho blushed bright red at that.

"Nice try," said both, as they spat again. The spits rapidly turned green, then red, and morphed into two more complete clones.

"Fortunately for you," said Agent Tin. "This power lasts only a few minutes, but while I can, I will personally strangle you all. Then, we'll take your bodies back to the base. Apparently, a freshly killed life still has a good amount of interference lingering. If I cannot get you alive, at least I can bring your bodies."

They started to spit again, but the girls had it. Miho grabbed something from Yukari's backpack, which was already opened to be used, and sprayed at them.

"Arrghh!" Tin and his clones coughed, as the pepper spray blinded them. Their spits also got affected, and did not materialize when they dropped to the ground. The spits made small shrieks, then disappeared like smoke.

"Get them!" Miho roared, and everybody responded, except Mason.

"Wow!" Mason remembered. "I remember mom telling me not to get into any fight."

"We'll handle it for you!" Miho answered him, as she tackled the real man. Mason felt red, embarrassed that he _really_ felt like a damsel in distress.

"I am going to ask my mom, next time," he said to himself, as he watched the fight.

It turned into another wrestling match, but bigger as the girls tried to subdue their enemies. Miho personally wrestled with the Agent Tin, all by herself again. Saori and Hana both tackled one clone, while Yukari and Momo dealt with another. Yuzu and Anzu both tackled the last clone. Mako, however, stayed at a distance, manipulating with her tablet.

"Eww!" Momo grunted. "We're dealing with weird clones of a strange man, and all of them were created with his spit!"

"Eww!" Saori responded, as she wrestled with her target. "That's gross! You make me want to take a shower afterwards!"

"Just keep fighting!" Anzu called out to them nonchalantly, as she poked the clone in the eyes with a very hard piece of dried sweet potato. The clone winced in pain, and she and Yuzu knocked him down, their bodies slamming him hard unto the asphalt.

"Uf!" it groaned, and stopped breathing. Anzu and Yuzu suddenly backed away, as the clone rapidly disintegrated into a strange puff of green smoke, which disappeared faster than the clone was made.

"Eww," the two responded, but smiled at their success.

The others, encouraged by the defeat, then strangled their own targets further. Hana realized that she was as tall as the clone, and used her height to slam him.

"My mom would not like it," she calmly commented. "When I almost ruined by body with a body slam."

"Hold it!" Saori said, as the two restrained their target.

"Just knock him down," Anzu said.

The two obediently punched the clone, very hard. It then stopped fighting, and the two backed away, as it also turned into a green cloud that quickly disappeared.

Yukari and Momo, however, were having some trouble. The clone, seeing the others fall apart, started to wrestle with Yukari and Momo harder than ever.

"This guy is hard!" Momo groaned.

"Momo-chan!" Yuzu called out. "Aren't you a little taller than he?"

"I am NOT!" she replied without thinking, as she gave the clone a body slam, just as Hana did. The clone suddenly fell down, hard. It also disappeared in a cloud of strange green smoke, and the girls backed away to avoid it.

Miho, however, was having a particularly difficult time with Tin. The two went into a very furious match.

"I am not," he growled. "Going-to-be-defeated…by a little girl!"

"I am not little," said Miho. "But I have my strength."

"Insolent fool," he taunted her. "You can't defeat me, for I am made of metal, while you are made of carbon."

"Eh?" everybody responded to that.

The shock gave Tin the opportunity to throw Miho to the ground. However, she used her free left arm to soften the fall, and she came back up. Just then, Copper started to regain his consciousness.

"Arghh…" he moaned. "What just happened?"

"Copper…Tin…" Miho wondered. "You know, you two seem quite similar."

"Yes, we are!" Tin grunted, clenching his fists. "And we'll stick together, like copper and tin."

"But isn't it getting hot?" asked Copper, as he tried to get into the shade of the car. "Boy, I thought I was melting."

"Shut up!" Tin said. "We're now humans, not me-I mean, monsters or aliens like they, you know."

Miho squinted, and noticed Tin's eyes shake, causing her to remember something...

* * *

"Miho," her mother stood before her one day.

"Y-yes, _okaa-san_?" Miho asked.

"Have you wondered," she began. "Whether someone is lying or not?"

"No?"

"Look at their eyes," she told her. "Just as a criminal trembles when he or she is caught, so their eyes tremble at their sins."

* * *

She remembered.

"You two," Miho began. "Are not humans."

Everybody gasped.

"H-hey!" Copper roared. "Tin! You shouldn't have mentioned it!"

"It was your fault for losing consciousness!" Tin roared back. "And I—"

Miho had enough. She charged in, a mysterious stream of golden glow in her wake. She slammed into Tin, then gave him a punch so hard, he literally catapulted to where Copper was. He slammed into Copper, groaning.

"You are not humans," she said, approaching. "You are actually…"

She breathed, and Mason noticed something glowing from her hands. She then commenced pummeling the men, and as she did, the Agents started to pale, then their skin stared to fall off like paint.

"Wow!" Yukari screamed in delight. "Is Miho using it?"

"Guess so," Mako replied. "Whatever the interference is, Miho seems to quickly learn to utilize it well."

"And what are..." Momo trailed off, as she and others noticed something odd from the agents.

"Are you kidding me?" everybody gasped, as the Agents started to look as if they were cracking and melting, like real metals.

Miho kept pummeling the agents, and her friends watched in horror, as they saw that the "men" turned out to not be what they thought they were.

"Statues, eh?" Miho remarked, as she continued. "Brought to life with a strange form of interference. How did you all originate?"

She kept pummeling them, which exposed their true colors further. It helped that the sunlight blazed down upon them, accelerating the process.

"I-I-dunno!" the Agents tried to reason. "We-we just want to be humans!"

"What is the point of being a human," she stopped pummeling, but towered over them. "When the Corporation just treats you as a bunch of metals?"

"You-you're…" Agent Tin began, but started to melt together. The girls gasped, as the two started to merge together.

"Who are you?" Mason finally asked, coming forward. He was now right next to Miho.

"You are right," Copper finally said, sighing in resignation. He and Tin started to melt together, and their faces started to lose their human appearance. Despite that, both still had mouths to talk.

"We are just one whole piece of precious bronze," Copper admitted. "The Corporation just tested on us, wondering whether the interference could 'create life.' Well, to be honest, we are sort of living, but I don't think we really are."

"To be honest," Tin moaned, as he continued to merge with Copper. "We were formerly humans, or so we think. The Corporation used interference upon us, giving us life. We honestly don't know our true origins.

"It is possible," Copper groaned. "That we are technically created with intelligence, but we are not really humans. We want to be..."

"Something useful," Tin stated. "And feel 'useful' for once to humans."

"Yes, you are," Miho suddenly said, as she knelt down to them. "You've already shown that you all are great at fighting. Despite the cheating, that is."

She smiled, and the two Agents smiled back.

"Th-thank you," Copper managed to blurt out. "At least we felt meaningful."

"Thanks," Tin said curtly, as the two completely merged together.

The group backed away, as the mass of copper and tin morphed and towered, and turned into a statue. The statue bore a tall man in strange armor, with a strange ball in his left.

"Are you kidding me?" Mason reacted in shock.

"What?" the girls asked.

"T-this is the statue!" Mason explained. "A long time ago, when I was younger back then, somebody stole the famous statue of a local football star!"

"You mean," said Mako. "American football."

"Yes!" said Mason. "Sorry that I forgot about that! Hehe. Well, this was the statue that was stolen years ago…"

"And the Corporation," began Miho, but chose not to finish. Everybody else around her nodded, knowing what had transpired.

"So," began Momo. "Wh-what are we going to do?"

"We have to..oh!" Miho stumbled, as Saori and her friends were about to grab her. She waved them off.

"I am fine," she replied. "I think I need some rest."

"Us too," Saori chimed in, stretching. "Wow, we had enough fight and drama for one day!"

"You are right," Mason said, as he took out a phone.

"What are you doing?" asked Yukari.

"Calling an old friend," he answered. "He runs a local junkyard business; he needs the money more than I do."

* * *

"Hello?"

"Hi there!"

"Hey, old friend! OK, I found it."

"What?"

"The Bronze Blaster statue."

"The Bronze Blaster...That famous football star from Acta?"

"His statue, stolen years ago."

"Yeah-wait...WHAT? H-how did you find the statue?"

"Friends of mine helped."

"Friends? Which friends?"

"Don't worry about it."

"But what about the—"

"No, no, don't share it."

"But you and your friends found it first!"

"There is something called 'taxes,' which are a type of forced donations that the government loves to do. The government also would want to know who got it, who are involved, and act all Big Brother and stuff."

"But still…"

"I understand how you feel, Edward Sanderson. But you know about Snowden, and what happened to him?"

"Yeah…"

"Keep the whole money; I have enough troubles already in life. I want no more."

* * *

"Wow," Anzu complimented him. "You sure sound quite smart."

"It's just something I learned," Mason said, pocketing his cell phone. "As you grow older, you realize how messed up politics can get. Remember your own school? How that MEXT official tried to shut down your school? Not keeping his promise? Then stacking the odds against you with all kinds of crazy weapons, such as that Karl-Gerat?"

All eight girls silently nodded, knowing what he meant.

"And he used his own political influence," Mason continued. "To do all that. Bingo. It's not just Japan; America is just like that in many ways."

"Man," Yukari admitted. "I thought that America was way better…"

"Welcome to America," said Mason.

* * *

After the phone call, Mason, Miho, and the girls commenced the clean-up of their residence. It was an easy clean-up; Mason checked his car for any damages, while Miho checked the unconscious police officer. Anzu, Momo, and Yuzu all analyzed the statue before them, while the other girls checked the suits and gadgets of the former Agents.

Yukari was going nuts.

"AWESOME!" she went into her fangirl mode. "These are awesome! And here's the manual, explaining each gadget! This is the Anti-Detection Pressurizer, a gadget that allows you to prevent anyone from talking about something. It even tells you what words to 'interfere' with; get it? Hehe. And it lets you know what it has interfered with, who was talking about it etc.! And it even says—"

"Panzer halt," Miho said, putting her right hand on Yukari's back. She deflated like a balloon, sighing.

"Sorry, Nishizumi-dono," she replied.

"That's alright," Miho said. "We can check the gadgets later. Just collect them. So, what are we going to do with the statue?"

"And how are we going to take it to my friend's location?" asked Mason. "And no, not my car. I have seen it _almost_ get damaged too many times already."

"And it's heavy, too!" Momo groaned, as she tested the statue. "We'll need a tank to move this thing!"

Everybody blinked.

"What?" Momo asked. "Oh..."

Everybody slowly turned to look at their garage.

* * *

"This is logical," said Mason. "But also weird."

Mason drove his car down the mountains, and ended up in a remote forest. Driving through, he found what he was looking for: a sign.

It was an old sign, typical of junkyards he had seen throughout his life. This one, however, had vines of roses surrounding the faded words:

EDWARD SANDERSON'S SALVAGE YARD

And underneath those big words, in smaller letters written with a black marker:

NO, I AM NOT SNOWDEN, BUT I LIKE HIM.

"Nice way to put it," Mason remarked, as he drove through the dirty road. He then faced the yard, full of broken cars and all kinds of "trash," left behind by all kinds of people, from poor to rich. Mason opened the gate, albeit after coating the locks in anti-bacterial hand sanitizer. He then forcefully opened the gate, and made a face at the smell.

"Typical!" he muttered, covering his mouth with his left hand. He traveled through the lot, full of piles after piles of all kinds of stuff; he also knew that it was infamous for being a "dumping ground" for criminals who just throw all kinds of stuff away. Fortunately, the owner of the yard is famous for his trustworthy nature, and police officers like him for his honesty.

This is why Mason called him.

"Brother!" a rather raspy voice called out from a shack nearby.

"Oh please," Mason said, covering himself in the sanitizer.

"So good to see you!" Edward charged at him, ready to hug him. "I am—arrghh! I hate sanitizer, you know?"

"I like being clean, please," Mason said. "Plus, I have new friends who appreciate being clean."

"Oh, alright!" he replied, clapping his hands. "So, let's get to the point."

* * *

"He's a man of few words," Mason remarked, getting into his car and calling his friends. "Miho, Anzu! Can you all track it?"

"We're still figuring out the Agents' devices," Miho's voice called over. "Plus, I have to keep physically reminding Yukari not to go...what do you call it?"

"We call it 'fangirling' or something like that," answered Mason. "Anyway, what did you all find, other than that GPS thing that tracks my car?"

"Loads of stuff!" Yukari's passionate voice boomed from the phone. It was far away, but still loud enough for Mason to wince a little.

"Yukari," Miho called out from the phone. "Please calm down. It's futuristic technology, but we are still figuring it out."

"But it's so cool!" her voice boomed.

"It is," Mason admitted. "So, any news?"

"OK," Miho said. "Mako managed to somehow pinpoint your location, and the pathway to there. Wow, even the most advanced GPS looks nothing like this.

"Now," Anzu's voice echoed from the phone. "We know our plan."

"OK," said Mason. "I got my friend's permission. He will take the whole credit for it, since I do not want you all or I to get into any mess. The plan is let him assume that he found it, and we'll just get away."

"Roger that!" the girls called from the phone.

"Thanks," he replied, turning it off. "Now, let's wait."

* * *

"Careful!" Mason called out, directing the tank.

Mason decided to use his hand signals to direct the Panzer IV ausf H. It roared and groaned, as its tracks pulverized the poor weeds beneath; as usual, it traversed over the forest cover, avoiding the asphalt roads as much as possible. On top of it, the statue was bound tight, with the same ropes used to bind the girls before.

"Well, well," Mason said, as the tank drew near. "Stop at the wall."

The tank stopped, and three of the strongest girls went out to lift the statue.

"Hold it!" Mason commanded them, as he went inside the yard. "And careful! That thing is expensive!"

"We're the strongest, eh?" Momo grunted, lifting up one side of the statue. For some reason, the statue's bottom was triangular, which was perfect. Momo held one side, while Miho and Yukari held the others.

"But," Miho said, as she calmly lifted the statue with the others. "We'll need more, so we'll train after we rest from today."

"Wait!" Saori called from the tank interior. "Self-defense training?"

"Yes," said Miho. "I realize that I am the only one who knows that, so we'll all train as a safety measure."

"Me too!" Mason said. "I don't want to sit behind and..."

Both blushed, knowing what they were thinking about. Saori smirked.

"Let's get going," Saori said, breaking the awkward silence.

"OK!" Mason quickly said. "Steady; now, throw into this specific pile of dump. That way, it will look like somebody legitimately dumped it here."

"What about your friend?" asked Yukari.

"He's learning how to feign innocence," he told them. "As a promise, he's not going to talk about you or me. He's great at that."

"Good," Saori said. "And we'll use our devices to eliminate our tracks."

"Thanks!" Mason answered. "Oh yeah, mine too!"

* * *

"Mr. Edward Sanderson?" the police officer said, as he and his crew checked the statue.

"Yes?" he asked proudly, as a huge crowd was there, with news reporters flocking to him to get his opinion. In the background, a truck was loading the statue.

"How was it possible to find this statue?" asked the officer and others.

"It's a dumping ground," he replied. "That's that."

"And how?" they asked.

He just shrugged, and gave a weird grin that obviously made others NOT want to talk much. Edward had some sort of an ability to make people not talk much; Mason found this useful, as he was one of the very few who knew about the girls and their tank.

"No tracks," the officer whispered. "No nothing to show. This is puzzling indeed, right detective?"

"Right," a group of detectives answered, surveying the whole yard. "It was obvious that the statue was dumped not long ago, but we have no evidence of who dumped it. And Edward Sanderson has a mental disorder as well, which complicates the matter."

"So he's free?" the officer asked them, who all nodded.

"Alright," he said. "Let's go."

As the detectives left, one of them stayed behind and scanned the yard.

"Can it be..." he wondered, but waved off his thought and trotted back to his group.

* * *

"We're safe," said Saori, listening to a secret headphone implanted into a nearby tree, as the junkyard's visitors gradually dispersed.

"Good," said Mason. "Now, I have to go."

"W-wait!" began Miho. "I...thanks for everything."

They blushed.

"Us too!" Yukari yelled.

"Yup!" Saori said, smiling.

"Thank you," Hana answered, curtsying.

"Good luck," Mako said flatly, but Mason noticed a little smirk on her face.

"Good luck!" Anzu said, giving him a V-sign.

"Bye-bye," Yuzu called out, as Mason went into his car.

"And make sure," Momo said loudly at the driver's window. "That you're safe and OK, OK?"

"OK," he answered, smiling. "Man, you worry like a girlfriend."

"I am not!" she roared, blushing bright red. "J-just go!"

"Farewell!" he called out, driving down. "I will be back!"

"Thanks!" everybody yelled back.

"He's so nice," Saori sighed, as the car disappeared into the road.

"And better than I thought," Momo grunted. Anzu and Yuzu both smirked at that.

"So," Miho began. "Should we start on training?"

"Even if we do," Anzu said. "Only three of us seem strong enough to fend the Agents, and we may not even have enough time to get all of us ready."

"You are right," Miho said, thinking deeply. "What should we do?"

"We need stronger girls!" Momo roared.

* * *

"What the..." a petite girl stared. With short, dark brown hair and eyes, coupled with a mostly white T-shirt and a pair of (mostly) white spats, the girl could pass for a young boy. She was playing with her volleyball, throwing it up and down, when she noticed something was up.

"Hey," the girl realized. "The lights are not flashing. The people all around me stopped walking, but look...frozen?"

She took out her cell phone, trying to call her teammates.

No signal.

"What is going on?" she said to herself. "Wait a minute, even the wind...stopped?"

The wind apparently was frozen in place; the leaves that fluttered through it stopped. The girl then leaped very high, and grabbed a leaf. It tore in half, but the other half stayed in the air, while the other half was in the girl's hand. She studied it, its green color still bright.

"Captain!" a familiar voice boomed.

She turned around, and sighed in relief to see another person unfrozen. A tall, buxom girl with brown hair and a red bandanna tied like a ribbon on her hair dashed towards the petite girl. She donned a volleyball uniform of white and red, with a number "3" on her chest.

"Kondou Taeko!" the captain answered back, dropping the torn leaf. "What just happened now?"

"I am not sure," she answered. "Captain Isobe, I was just walking to our practice, when everything literally stopped. A few girls whom I talked with suddenly stopped, and appear frozen! Now, we are the only ones who..."

"Yeah," the captain finished her sentence. "You and I seem to be the only ones alright, so we'll go to our practice location and discuss this."

The two walked towards a vast yard, next to the tank garage. They saw another welcoming sight.

"Captain!" a tall, slender girl with the same type of uniform as Taeko called from a distance; her uniform, however, had the number "5" on it. Her short, brown hair had a small ponytail held by a red hair tie.

"Kawanishi Shinobu!" the captain called out to her, as the two raced towards her.

"Rare for you to call me by my whole name," Shinobu said. "Well, Captain Isobe Noriko, what happened here?"

"We have no idea," Noriko and Taeko both answered her.

"Say," said Shinobu. "Where is Sasaki Akebi?"

"Oh!" Noriko said, dashing out to a nearby gate. "Akebi? There she is!"

The rest of the team rushed to the gate, and saw her. Akebi Sasaki was barely walking, frightened by everything around her. The tall, blond bombshell of a volleyball player trembled as she walked, shocked by the sudden changes all around. She kept turning her head around and around, the long ponytail of blond waterfall waving back and forth. She wore the same uniform as Taeko and Shinobu, except its number was "6."

"Akebi-san!" Noriko called out to her, rushing.

"Captain!" she screamed, and ran at her, hugging her tight.

"Uf!" Noriko groaned. "Did your chest grow? Man, I hope you're alright."

"I am not!" she admitted, releasing her captain and crying, tears falling down. "I was so glad to see you all!"

"I am glad we're all alright," said Noriko, as the team gathered together. Nodding to each other, and Akebi wiping the last tears away, the four girls stacked their hands together in a team hand-stack.

"Girls," Noriko declared. "I do not know what had happened, but we are all in this together. In times high and low, or crazy like now, we are all in this together! Let's go!"

"Hai!" everybody screamed, and raised their hands up.

"So," Shinobu said. "What are we going to do?"

"Eh..." Noriko looked around. "I dunno."

Shinobu put her left hand in a facepalm, while the others looked around.

The practice field was vast and empty, and everything looked frozen like elsewhere. The wind stayed as still as glass, the leaves decorating parts of the sky like lanterns on a ceiling. The girls mindlessly looked around, trying to figure out something, or at least find something.

"Hey," Akebi said, pointing at something in the distance. "The garage door."

The others looked. At the tank garage, a door was slightly open, enough for a person to go through. Between the door, they saw a faint purplish-red glow.

"Well!" Noriko said. "I guess we have to go there."

"T-there?" asked Akebi. "I-I am not sure what's there, but..."

"I think," said Shinobu. "We all have to go there."

"And," said Akebi, calmer than ever. "I saw Miho there."

"Miho?" the others asked, and stared at the gap.

They gasped, as they saw a familiar silhouette, waving at them. It then turned, the distinct hair and the Anglerfish emblem on its back.

"Yeah," Akebi said, now quite calm and content. "I think we need to follow her."

The four girls nodded to each other, and ran towards the gate.

"Miho!" all of them screamed.

"Hang in there!" Noriko yelled. "Wait for us!"

* * *

 **And the first battle ends...with Miho and her friends as the WINNER! OK, let's get to the point.**

 **I apologize if I sound a little off with this chapter; I do not have a laptop, because it is getting fixed. I hope that once it is done, I can spend a better part of time revising it. I hope this chapter is great for all of you!**

 **Please review, fave, and follow my story, and let others know, too! Thank you, and panzer vor!**

 **Update: I got the news about the laptop. The cost sounds high, but seems manageable. And I managed to revise and edit the chapter well enough.**

 **Update 2: Let's go GUTS!**


	12. Chapter Special

**Greetings from SeekerMeeker!**

 **I humbly apologize for the long, LONG hiatus on this story!**

 **I mean, I got so much into "Girls Dead Rise" that I forgot to even put up a "chapter special" about the hiatus!**

 **OK, let's get to the point:**

* * *

 **Update on This Story...**

This story is technically not dead. But its future hangs in the balance.

Essentially, I find out that a good story not only has a plot, but also an intriguing theme that keeps the story going. In this story, there is the Corporation, and the efforts of them to extract "interference" for ulterior motives. Then, we have the girls, who are trying to get back home.

Now, I neglect to realize that the "zombie apocalypse" theme was more interesting.

So then, I have a request:

 **SHOULD I CONTINUE THIS STORY, OR JUST FOCUS ON ONE AT A TIME?**

There you go.

 **DO NOT REVIEW ON THIS, BUT REVIEW IN THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS OR PM ME.**

Thank you for keeping in touch!

* * *

 **Now, let's survive vor!**


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